The Sole Operator in the Corner of the Room

The word I heard most at the Workplace Health & Safety Show was "notice". Not just being aware of the psychosocial load in yourself, but noticing it in other people. The next night I was at the launch of Service NSW's Small Business Advisory program in Newcastle, and I saw exactly what that means.

There was a man standing away from the group. I didn't know him or his story. When we got talking, he ran his own Pty Ltd as a sole operator. He wasn't short of work. He was short of everything else: the numbers, the systems, a written plan to come back to, and anyone to ask. He was a small business trying to fit inside a big business structure, on his own.

There was no need to say "you look lonely, do you need someone to talk to?" What he needed to hear was simpler: we're here, we're in this together, what you're carrying is real, and you've been noticed. Connection can be deliberate. Someone just has to start it.

One person, every hat

Most of us in civil and landscaping set up a Pty Ltd for good reasons. The accountant recommends it, head contractors and councils often want to deal with a company, and it sets the business up to grow or sell one day. The day you do it, you stop being just an operator. You also become the managing director, the operations manager, the bookkeeper, the WHS officer and the sales team, usually after a ten-hour day in the seat.

Wearing all of those hats isn't the problem. Wearing them without knowing what each one involves is. And the company protects less than most people think. Directors can still be personally liable for unpaid PAYG withholding, super and GST, for personal guarantees on finance, and as an officer under WHS law.

Big-company rules, one-person business

Then come the head contractor's requirements: prequalification portals, safety management systems, insurances, inductions and documentation built for a company with a safety department. Most of it exists for good reasons. But a sole operator has no back office to do it, and that's a psychosocial risk in itself: "Where do I go? I'm on my own."

Principal contractors have their own duty to consult, cooperate and coordinate with the businesses they engage. I'd like to see that include requirements scaled to the size of the business, and a person a sole operator can actually ask.

icare: what it is and what it isn't

Workers compensation came up that night as the bill that feels like it's bleeding small operators dry, with nowhere else to go. Some of that is real. Some of it is a gap in knowing how it works.

• A working director counts as a worker of their own company. If the company pays more than $7,500 a year in wages, including directors' fees and super, it needs a policy. At $7,500 or less, with no apprentice or trainee and no related companies, it's exempt. (icare)
• The premium starts as your wages times your industry rate. Pay yourself more and the premium goes up with it, so it has to be in your charge-out rate, not a surprise each year.
• Check your classification. You're rated on your main business activity. If it's wrong, you could be paying the wrong rate. Industry rates have been held for 2026-27.
• It's regulated. If a premium looks wrong, ask icare for a review on 13 44 22. If that doesn't fix it, you can go to SIRA within 28 days.
• It's there for the bad day. If you're badly hurt on a machine, it pays medical costs and replaces your wage. Most of us couldn't cover that ourselves.

One more change catches people out: since 1 July 2026, super has to reach the fund within 7 business days of every payday, including your own as a director. The quarterly catch-up is gone. (ATO)

A plan to come back to

The fix starts with perspective, and then a plan. Write down every obligation the business has: tax, super, icare, ASIC, insurances, rego, licences, finance. Then make sure your rate pays for all of it, plus the hours you spend quoting, driving and doing paperwork. When it's on paper, the bills stop being ambushes and the noise in your head gets quieter.

Through Champion Business Builder I've put together a free Financial Obligations Map for sole-director companies in civil and landscaping. Print it, tick off what applies to you and take it to your accountant.

Where to go when you're on your own

• Service NSW [Small Business Advisory](https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/business): up to 4 hours of free one-on-one advice a year on planning, cash flow and pricing.
• [NSW Small Business Commissioner](https://www.smallbusiness.nsw.gov.au/) on 1300 795 534: free advice and low-cost mediation, including disputes between contractors and subcontractors.
• icare on 13 44 22 for your policy and premium, and SIRA on 13 74 72 if a premium dispute isn't resolved.
• Beyond Blue's [NewAccess for Small Business Owners](https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support/newaccess-mental-health-coaching/small-business-owners): free, confidential coaching by phone or video with coaches who understand small business. No GP referral needed.
• MATES in Construction on 1300 642 111, any time, for you or a mate you're worried about.

And if you see someone standing on their own at the next industry night, go and say g'day. You don't need the right words. You just need to start.