In the resources sector, safety often conjures images of PPE, pre-starts, and hazard reports, all critical, physical aspects of risk management. However, psychological safety is equally important and increasingly recognised under new codes of practice around psychosocial risks at work.
Mackay Safety’s latest innovation – a custom-developed payroll dashboard for a reputable drilling and rehabilitation company, Central Queensland Exploration (CQE) – is an example of what happens when organisations treat psychological health as seriously as physical safety. Built in partnership with CQE’s finance and safety teams, the project employed a work redesign approach to eliminate job stressors that had been quietly, yet consistently, affecting employee wellbeing.
“Work pressure is the leading cause of psychosocial injuries in Australia,” Naomi explained. “And in high-cognition roles like payroll, especially when there’s little room for error, the mental load is significant.”
Rather than treating stress as an individual issue, CQE and Mackay Safety tackled the root cause: the design of the payroll process itself. Using the hierarchy of controls to guide decision-making, Mackay Safety collaborated with CQE to develop a custom payroll dashboard that effectively mitigated key psychosocial risks by automating manual tasks, reducing emotional strain, and enhancing role clarity.
“We weren’t just digitising for efficiency – we were reducing harm,” said Mick Storch, founder and managing director of Mackay Safety. “It was about building systems that support people to do their jobs without unnecessary stress.”
The dashboard integrates with CQE’s existing 4PS software and accounting platform. Timesheet data is now entered once via a mobile-friendly form, approved digitally, and automatically transferred into payroll, eliminating emails, rekeying, and errors. For field staff, it means clearer expectations and smoother pay cycles. For finance, it means better workflows and fewer headaches.
Since implementing the system, CQE has halved payroll processing time – from three days to around one and a half – while improving accuracy and team satisfaction.
Importantly, the solution wasn’t a one-size-fits-all product. It was a collaborative development tailored to CQE’s unique needs.
“You don’t just get software with Mackay Safety – you get a partner who listens, adapts, and genuinely cares about outcomes,” said Simon Harris, CQE HSE Manager.
“The time savings were immediate, but what’s been more powerful is the change in atmosphere,” said Sidney Potter, CQE Accounts Administrator. “People aren’t stressed about delays or chasing approvals. They’re more confident in the process – and in us.”
These efficiencies have also freed up time for more value-adding work. As CQE HSE Manager Simon Harris observed, the gains from streamlined systems multiply in ways that are hard to quantify – building quiet confidence across teams and creating a flow-on effect at the coalface.
This success mirrors other changes Mackay Safety has delivered for CQE using its 4PS software. From digital asset management to compliance workflows and pre-starts, the company’s approach consistently reduces both physical and psychological hazards by improving work design.
While the dashboard itself focused on payroll, the ripple effects have improved safety culture across CQE. Team members feel heard, processes feel fairer, and communication flows more easily between departments.
As Naomi Armitage noted in her keynote speech at the Resource Industry Network Safety Conference about designing effective psychosocial risk management controls, focusing on work design, many workplace tensions, from interpersonal conflict to disengagement, stem from unclear roles, procedural injustice, or avoidable stressors. Mackay Safety’s digital systems reduce these “work factors” by increasing transparency and reducing friction.
“Too often, businesses wait for issues like burnout or disengagement to surface before acting,” Naomi Armitage said. “But the best controls eliminate exposure, which is exactly what this payroll dashboard has done.”
Simon Harris also noted that a single system improvement, when thoughtfully implemented, can drive widespread cultural change, enabling businesses like CQE to handle future growth without sacrificing wellbeing.
This dual emphasis on mental and physical safety reflects Mackay Safety’s broader philosophy. Across all client projects, the goal is the same: to make safety second nature.
The CQE payroll dashboard is already having an impact on other areas of the business. Similar design principles are now being explored to manage training, equipment tickets, and role-based access, all through a psychosocial lens.
Mackay Safety’s ability to evolve its tools in partnership with clients is what makes its safety impact so enduring. Mick Storch believes this consultative, user-led approach will become even more vital as the industry faces growing pressure to address psychological risk.
“Safety isn’t just hard hats and high-vis anymore,” he said. “It’s clarity, confidence, and culture. And those things start with how you design your work.”
Mackay Safety’s payroll dashboard project with CQE demonstrates how innovation, collaboration, and a people-first mindset can drive real change in workplace safety. By eliminating psychosocial hazards at the systems level, Mackay Safety has enhanced efficiency and contributed to creating a safer and healthier work environment.
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Thank you to the team at CQE for sharing their experience partnering with Mackay Safety and 4PS software.
Contact Mackay Safety today on 07 4944 1272 or explore the website to learn more about how we can support your operations with services and technology that ensure you keep on top of your safety and compliance requirements.
