There are certain rights of appeal for enforcement action taken by an OHS inspector. These rights of appeal relate to an OHS inspector's decision to:

• issue an improvement notice;
• decide that the operator of a facility has not taken adequate action to remove the threat to health or safety that caused a prohibition notice to be issued;
• issue a direction not to disturb; or
• issue a notice to take possession (removal or plant of sample).

Appeals can also be made when an OHS inspector makes a decision in relation to a disputed provisional improvement notice (PIN) issued by a Health and Safety Representative. A Guideline on Enforcement Decision Appeals has been prepared to give an overview of the process.

Appeals are made to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) and must normally be lodged within 14 days of the OHS inspector?s decision. The AIRC has two main functions relative to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 (OPGGSA) and the relevant State and Territory equivalents:

• To rule on any disagreements that arise during consultations to form or vary designated work groups (ref: Clause 23 of Schedule 3 to the OPGGSA); and
• To hear any appeal against an OHS inspector?s decision (ref: Clause 81 of Schedule 3 to the OPGGSA).

The AIRC has published rules that set out how it deals with each type of matter that may be referred to it. The AIRC's rules and associated forms can be found on the AIRC website.