New laws to allow unions and employer groups the right to launch criminal action on work safety issues were the last major piece of legislation for the sixth Legislative Assembly.
The controversial laws were passed despite opposition from the Liberals, Canberra Party and Greens MLAs.
Opposition MLA Bill Stefaniak said the complex laws needed ''a professional body like the DPP to do your prosecutions, not employers or unions who might have unreasonable grudges against each other''.
Workplace law expert John Wilson criticised the move earlier in the week to allow third-party criminal prosecutions.
He said even with the Department of Public Prosecutions retaining overarching responsibility, criminal prosecutions would be left in the hands of prosecution authorities. But Industrial Relations Minister Andrew Barr said the legislation provided a range of improvements to worker safety. The laws would allow workers to refuse work where they believed there was a health and safety risk.
''The new law will help give the ACT's workers peace of mind that when they leave for work in the morning, they will return safely home at the end of their day,'' Mr Barr said.
He said the new powers would extend safety rights to volunteers, independent contractors and trainees a move criticised by the Canberra Party's Richard Mulcahy. Master Builders Association deputy executive director Jerry Howard said there was not enough time given for the industry to assess the benefits of the laws.
Greens MLA Deb Foskey agreed, and said the Government had not given the Assembly enough time to examine the details.
The Government had treated the Assembly with contempt by only issuing the final Bill a week before it was passed. ''I have no doubt that were this not a minority Government, it would have ensured that Bill was available to us sooner,'' she said.