By Sarah Jones Palmer, Co-Founder, The Human Co.
In an industry powered by ideas, relationships, and rapid turnaround, our greatest asset is, and always has been, our people. And right now, they’re under pressure. Possibly more pressure than I’ve seen in the past few decades.
For the most part, client-agency relationships are respectful and collaborative. And that’s where the magic happens. But there are times when the deadlines become brutal, boundaries blur, feedback turns personal, and the ante goes up. That’s when pressure becomes risk. Not just to culture, but to individual wellbeing, team performance and long-term retention.
With recent updates to Australia’s Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws¹, agencies are now required to proactively identify and reduce psychosocial risks in the workplace. These include stress, burnout, aggression and unreasonable expectations. And these risks don’t just come from within agency walls; they often arise in client interactions too.
That’s a significant shift. Because now, how our people are treated by external partners is part of our legal responsibility.
Clients are vital, and raising these types of concerns can feel risky. But ignoring them may carry even greater risk, especially when the potential cost is your team’s mental health, or your agency’s ability to retain talent and deliver great work.
Meeting the minimum standards of WHS is no longer enough. Agencies need to be actively engaged in creating a safe, respectful working environment, internally and externally.
A good place to start is by opening up conversations about pressure, especially during high-stakes pitches, compressed timelines, and difficult feedback. You can also take action by:
- Building awareness. Make sure your senior leaders understand the WH&S changes and obligations. If you require more information, Advertising Council Australia’s Member Webinar on Psychosocial Legislation can be found on its Employment Hub², and the Cross Industry Psychosocial Code of Conduct³, developed by the MFA with input from and endorsement by ACA, is another valuable resource. It includes sample contract clauses to help set respectful boundaries from the outset, and reinforces the shared Duty of Care for all businesses.
- Equipping Leaders. Train managers to recognise signs of stress early and respond with empathy and confidence.
- Reviewing and strengthening your policies.. A clear, up-to-date staff handbook is a baseline criterion for ACA Accreditation. For all agencies, ask yourself whether your policies adequately outline behaviour expectations, escalation pathways, and how psychosocial risk will be managed.
- Resetting boundaries. When the pressure starts to build, don’t wait for it to escalate. Flag potential impacts on team wellbeing early with clients. Framing it as a shared challenge, and not a complaint, helps protect both the relationship and your people.
This is more than compliance with the law. It’s about culture, and leadership. Psychosocial safety isn’t achieved through a policy sitting on a shelf. It takes active engagement, open conversations, and the confidence to hold respectful boundaries. When people feel safe, supported and respected, they do their best work. And that’s good for everyone.
Don’t wait until people have burned out to have these conversations. Protecting your team is protecting your business.
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Contact sarah@thehumanco.com.au for any support with your people strategy.
Footnotes
¹ Safe Work Australia. Model Code of Practice: Managing Psychosocial Hazards at Work. Retrieved July 2025 from https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/doc/model-code-practice-managing-psychosocial-hazards-work
² Advertising Council Australia. Agency Accreditation Resources. Retrieved July 2025 from https://www.advertisingcouncil.org.au/accreditation
³ Media Federation of Australia. Cross-Industry Psychosocial Code of Conduct. Retrieved July 2025 from https://www.mediafederation.org.au/code-of-conduct