The risks of not managing psychosocial hazards at work were heightened when SafeWorkNSW issued a prohibition notice to the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) following allegations of potential psychological harm to staff associated with a restructuring strategy in September last year. The reactions included confusion and outrage at an occupational health and safety (OHS) regulator …
Every company seems to have a Mission Statement, a Values Statement, or something similar that all employees are expected to follow and comply with. Largely, these are aspirational statements, but they are sometimes invoked when/if an employee needs to be disciplined or dismissed. The values are often vague and lend themselves to various interpretations, even …
Over the past few months, I have increasingly encountered the term “regulated industries” in the context of occupational health and safety (OHS) laws. In OHS in Australia, these industries seem predominantly to include: I can identify no reason why farming should not also be a “regulated industry”....
Over the last few decades, occupational health and safety (OHS) thinking has emphasised that the tangible hazards and risks at work are primarily created by unsafe systems of work or by poor organisational culture or maturity. I am not sure that “organisational” is the most appropriate adjective. There are better alternatives: terms that re-humanise the …
In 2023, a Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability recommended that the Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act 1992 be amended to introduce a positive duty on all duty-holders to eliminate disability discrimination, harassment and victimisation. This echoes the imposition in 2022 of a positive duty to prevent sexual harassment. Occupational …
In support of Australia’s Safe Work Month, I have recorded a 12-minute opinion piece on how Australian politics since 2010 has affected the perception and development of occupational health and safety, based on past SafetyAtWorkBlog articles. It is an interesting opportunity to reflect on the decisions and actions of influential individuals like Julia Gillard, Kristina …
The Victorian Government has yet to respond to a report on occupational health and safety (OHS) sentencing and penalties that it received over the Christmas period. The longer it takes to respond to the Sentencing Advisory Council recommendations, the more delayed the action required to improve the systems, which can deter employers from ignoring their …
