A state government review into Queensland’s workers’ compensation scheme is raising important questions about how psychological injuries are treated. Legal and mental health experts are urging caution before protections are wound back.

Queensland’s workers’ compensation scheme is under review. That alone is not unusual. Compensation frameworks are reviewed periodically, and this one has been running since 2003.

What makes this review significant is the climate it is happening in.

Psychological injury claims in Queensland have nearly doubled over the past five years. That statistic has triggered calls from some quarters to tighten access, raise thresholds, and make it harder for workers to claim.

Legal and mental health professionals are pushing back hard. And for blue-collar industries, where the conversation around mental health has only recently started to open up, the stakes are real.

What Is Actually Being Reviewed

The State Government has initiated a review of both the Industrial Relations Act 2016 and the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003.

The trigger is data. According to figures from the Queensland Government and the Workers’ Compensation Regulator, primary psychological injury claims rose by 97.4 per cent over five years, from 1,950 in 2020-21 to 3,849 in 2024-25. Secondary psychological injury claims increased by 62 per cent over the same period.

Those numbers are significant. But so is the context.

Primary psychological injury claims still represent around five per cent of total claims in Queensland. In 2024-25, there were 3,633 primary mental health claims out of 74,976 total claims lodged with WorkCover Queensland.

Put plainly, psychological injury claims are growing, but they remain a small share of an otherwise stable scheme.

The Concern From Legal Experts

Special Counsel at Travis Schultz and Partners, Sarah Grace, has worked extensively in this area and sees the risks clearly.

Her concern is not with the review itself. It is with what might happen to genuine claimants if the response to rising numbers is to make access harder.

“Psychological injuries are real, debilitating and can be life-altering. Workers deserve the same protection as they would for a physical injury.”

Grace works regularly with first responders and frontline workers, including police, paramedics, and nurses, who are dealing with post-traumatic stress. In many cases those injuries are the result of repeated exposure to trauma over time, not a single incident.

She points to the complexity of these cases as a reason for caution.

“Just because an injury can’t be seen on a scan doesn’t mean it isn’t real. In many of these cases, recovery is more complex and takes longer than for physical injuries.”

Queensland already provides presumptive laws for PTSD among first responders, recognising that workers exposed to trauma as part of their role deserve clearer access to support. Grace says any move to wind those provisions back would be deeply concerning.

Beyond frontline roles, she says the scheme is also seeing growth in claims linked to workplace bullying, harassment, and broader psychological harm across multiple industries.

“Feeling psychologically safe at work is fundamental. If protections are wound back, there is a real risk people will suffer in silence and that employers may place less emphasis on psychological safety.”

Why This Matters for Construction and Trades

Blue-collar industries have historically struggled with mental health disclosure. The barriers are well documented: stigma, a culture of toughness, financial pressure, and the reality that most workers on site cannot easily take time away from a job.

The construction industry has made genuine progress on this over the past decade. More builders, contractors, and trades are talking openly about mental health. More organisations are providing resources. More workers are reaching out earlier.

That progress did not happen automatically. It required sustained effort to lower barriers and shift culture. A regulatory change that signals harder access to support could quietly undermine that momentum.

Sue Jankovic, CEO of TIACS, which provides free and confidential mental health counselling to blue-collar workers, says the gains have come from making it easier to start the conversation, not harder.

“What we know works is removing the social, physical and financial barriers that stop workers asking for help. That means support that is free, relatable, available outside standard hours, and built by industry for industry.”

Jankovic draws a sharp distinction between the review’s focus, which centres on how the system responds once someone is injured, and where she believes the real gains are made.

“Our experience shows the biggest gains come earlier, when barriers are removed and people can access support before issues escalate into formal claims and long-term absence.”

Her point is simple but important. When someone on site feels it is not safe or simple to reach out, they wait. And the longer they wait, the worse the outcome tends to be. For the individual, their family, and the business they work for.

What the Numbers Do and Do Not Tell Us

The doubling of psychological injury claims over five years is the headline figure driving this review. But Grace and Jankovic both argue the number needs to be read carefully.

Rising claims do not automatically mean the scheme is being rorted. They can reflect a workforce that is more aware of its rights. A workplace culture that has shifted enough for people to finally come forward. Better diagnostic recognition of conditions that previously went unreported or unrecorded.

Grace puts it directly:

“Yes, psychological injury claims are rising, but that reflects greater awareness, more complex workplaces and the reality of what people are experiencing.”

That does not mean fraud is not a real issue. It is, and no credible commentator is suggesting otherwise. But the response to fraud concerns should be targeted at fraud, not at the broader class of workers who are genuinely injured.

“Addressing fraud is important, but so is ensuring genuinely injured workers are not treated with suspicion.”

Queensland’s scheme is, by most measures, a strong one. Premiums are comparatively low. The framework is regarded as fair and stable. The review is an opportunity to improve that, not dismantle it.

What Good Reform Would Look Like

Grace’s position is that the review should be focused on better recovery, better return-to-work pathways, and long-term sustainability, without cutting off access for people who need it.

Jankovic’s organisation operates upstream of the formal claims process entirely. TIACS exists to reach workers before they reach that point. The evidence from their work is that early intervention works, that access matters, and that barriers, financial, cultural, or structural, delay help in ways that compound harm.

For the construction industry specifically, what is happening in Queensland is worth watching closely. Workers’ compensation frameworks shape how employers and workers relate to injury and recovery. If the signal from this review is that psychological injuries are harder to claim, the quiet message back to the site is that it is not worth trying.

That is not a signal the industry can afford.

What Builders and Contractors Should Do Now

The review is underway and the outcome is not yet determined. But there are practical steps that construction businesses can take regardless of where the scheme lands.

Know what your current obligations are under Queensland workers’ compensation law, including for psychological injury and return-to-work planning. If you are unsure, speak to someone who does.

Create a workplace environment where raising mental health concerns is not penalised or quietly discouraged. That starts at the top of the business and flows through to how supervisors respond on site.

Be aware of what support is available. TIACS offers free counselling specifically for blue-collar workers. The cost of not using it is almost always higher than the cost of using it.

And if you or a worker has a legitimate claim, understand the process. Legal advice early, from someone who knows this area, can make a significant difference to outcomes.

The Broader Point

The construction industry has spent years working to shift its culture around mental health. That work is ongoing and far from finished.

Reviews like this one are part of how policy evolves. They are not inherently a threat. But they require careful handling, because the people most affected are often the least able to advocate for themselves in a policy debate.

First responders dealing with PTSD. Tradies managing cumulative stress. Workers who have finally gotten to a point where they feel they can ask for help.

That progress is worth protecting.

The review should deliver a scheme that is sustainable and resistant to fraud. It should also deliver a scheme that still treats psychological injury as a real, legitimate, and serious harm.

Those two goals are not in conflict. The question is whether the process stays focused on both.

Author: TGB Editorial