Category: consultation

New OHS resources on workplace bullying

The Australian Capital Territory has released a package of new OHS material on workplace bullying.  The package includes

  • “advice on responsibilities under the Work Safety Act 2008 with regard to bullying
  • a Checklist for Employers
  • Guidance on how to take a risk management approach to workplace bullying, as is required by the Work Safety Act 2008
  • Guidance on how to implement a complete Complaint Resolution process in respect of workplace bullying
  • two new training programs available from the Office of the Work Safety Commissioner – Workplace Bullying Awareness for workers and Prevention and Management of Workplace Bullying for more senior staff Continue reading “New OHS resources on workplace bullying”

Unsafe worker gets his job back

The front page story in the The Australian newspaper has generated many emails and phone calls to SafetyAtWorkBlog from irate safety professionals.

The nub of the story is that Fair Work Australia has reinstated a worker who was sacked because of consistently unsafe work practices.

It is important to remember that the decision by Fair Work Australia is undertaken under the Fair Work Act 2009 and not occupational health and safety regulations.  In the case of Norske Skog Paper Mills (Australia) Ltd the relevant OHS legislation would have been New South Wales.

The story revolves around the dismissal of an employee not the unsafe actions of that worker. Continue reading “Unsafe worker gets his job back”

Workers’ Compensation becomes an election issue in South Australia

On 12 February 2010, the Greens parliamentarian, Mark Parnell, accused WorkCover Corporation of failing injured workers in South Australia.  In response to the release of the Parliament’s Statutory Authorities Review Committee (SARC) inquiry into WorkCover, he said

“The Greens have been saying for a number of years now that the outsourcing of WorkCover’s claims management is a failed experiment, and must be reversed….. Until WorkCover fixes up the poor management of injured workers, it will never get out of its financial mess.” Continue reading “Workers’ Compensation becomes an election issue in South Australia”

Workplace bullying awareness increases in Australia

A reader has advised that there has been an increase in calls to WorkCover NSW concerning workplace bullying, following the sentencing of four men earlier this week in Victoria.

WorkSafe Victoria has confirmed that its advisory service is receiving 30 calls a day on the issue where the regular rate was 10.  WorkSafe also says that the calls are taking longer than regular OHS calls.  This is to be expected when dealing with psychosocial hazards.  Also, if callers are not up-to-date on the OHS criteria for bullying, it may take additional time for inspectors on the advisory line to discuss the matter. Continue reading “Workplace bullying awareness increases in Australia”

Two workplace incidents – zookeeper and jockey

On 1 February 2010 a zookeeper at the Werribee Zoo was pinned for several minutes under a gate weighing around 200 kilograms.  The Metropolitan Ambulance Service reported that

“…the woman in her 20s was pinned under a gate weighing more than three hundred kilograms, for approximately three minutes.”

According to Paramedic Brett Parker,

“Thankfully a number of staff were nearby and three men managed to lift the gate off her body.  Incredibly when we arrived the woman was upright and talking, but she was in significant pain.  Given the potential for spinal injury we gave her pain relief medication before fitting her with a neck brace.” Continue reading “Two workplace incidents – zookeeper and jockey”

Work harder? You must be mad

On 24 January 2010, the Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, encouraged all Australians to increase their “productivity growth“.  But what if increased productivity could result in developing a mental disorder?

The February 2010 edition of the  Harvard Mental Health Letter includes a report that lists the following key points:

  • “Symptoms of mental health disorders may be different at work than in other situations.
  • Although these disorders may cause absenteeism, the biggest impact is in lost productivity.
  • Studies suggest that treatment improves work performance, but is not a quick fix.”

Will the Australian Government review its policy on mental health?  Will the Prime Minister accept that productivity and mental health are both long term problems that need strategies that extend beyond his next term in office? Continue reading “Work harder? You must be mad”

Compliance campaigns not toothless

Regularly Australian OHS authorities announce campaigns in certain regions or for certain industries.   To some extent these campaigns are about raising awareness of OHS issues but the fieldwork by inspectors does have some real benefit for some employers and workers.

Often these campaigns result in scores of improvement notices being issued.  Safety improvements are a major part of this inspectorate activity so, to some extent, the more notices, the better.  But notices aren’t advisories, they are directions that require action. Continue reading “Compliance campaigns not toothless”

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