The issue of working in heat has resurfaced in some Australian media this February, again driven by trade unions. The union approach continues to show negotiating flaws, deflections, and at least one inaccuracy.
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Category: design
Workism: Australia’s Most Socially Acceptable Form of Self‑Harm
Safe Work Australia states that :
“A psychosocial hazard is anything that could cause psychological harm (e.g. harm someone’s mental health).”
Preventing these hazards is most effective and sustainable through redesigning work, but this approach should not deny that personal decisions can also be hazardous. In the broader social and occupational contexts, it is worth considering workism as a psychosocial hazard.
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Bricks + Cheese + Clutter = Safety and Health
Until recently, Donna McGeorge‘s book “Red Brick Thinking” passed me by, but her perspective aligns closely with the occupational health and safety (OHS) concepts of “safety clutter” and the Swiss cheese model.
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When Work Kills and No One Counts the Dead
An open letter about workplace suicides was published to support World Mental Health Day in 2024. The research work of some of the signatories has continued and appeared in a 2026 editorial in Volume 46 of “Crisis – The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention“, calling for action.
[This article, unavoidably, discusses suicide]
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Agriculture Has the Injuries of a Regulated Industry, But Not the Regulation
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:
- Construction
- Mining and
- Major Hazards.
I can identify no reason why farming should not also be a “regulated industry”.
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Keeping Workers Safe in a “Future Made in Australia” Economy
The Australian Government is committed to increasing the manufacturing sector through its Future Made in Australia strategy and legislation. To participate in the program and receive funds or tax incentives, companies must meet the Community Benefit Principles, including providing safe and healthy workplaces.
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Limitarianism, Greed and OHS
Over coffee with colleagues yesterday, I spoke a lot about the sociological context of work and occupational health and safety. I realised I was echoing many of the points I made in an article from February 2024, so I revisited that article on Limitarianism and produced this short 5-minute summary of the issue.