Category: health

The “Triffid defence” applied to asbestos

At the end of The Day of The Triffids, John Wyndham, had mankind living on the Isle of Wight, making sure that Triffids did not infest the island.  Tasmania has a similar mindset as can be seen by its diligence on keeping the land free of foxes but that is keeping out a hazard.  The greater challenge is renewing the land and removing a hazard that was allowed to grow and establish itself like triffids or, more realistically, asbestos.

SafetyAtWorkBlog has written elsewhere about the Australian Workers Union push to make Tasmania free of asbestos by 2020.  The signs are increasingly positive as the Tasmanian government issued a media release on 6 June 2010 that provides substantial impetus and legitimacy to the campaign.

The Minister for Workplace Relations, David O’Byrne, said today that the government will work with industry to develop legislative frameworks that provide a pathway for the prioritised removal of asbestos from Tasmania. Continue reading “The “Triffid defence” applied to asbestos”

Prisons are another world when implementing workplace safety

The new report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) into prisoner health and welfare makes no mention of workplace safety, even though most prisons in Australia have formal work programs for commercial gain.

The report “The health of Australia’s prisoners 2009” details the health and welfare status of Australian prisoners with some very confronting statistics that should be of more general concern to the community.  The media release summarises some of the report’s findings:

“The report highlights a number of significant health issues.  It shows that rates of chronic conditions, such as asthma, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and communicable diseases such as hepatitis B and hepatitis C, are significantly higher among prisoners than among the general population.

‘Of particular concern is the number of people who enter prison with mental health issues and high levels of psychological distress,’ said Ingrid Johnston of the AIHW’s Social and Indigenous Group. Continue reading “Prisons are another world when implementing workplace safety”

Harmonising bullying terminology extends well beyond OHS

In May 2010, Workplace Health & Safety Queensland uploaded a Workplace Harassment Assessment Tool.  The curious element to the information is that Queensland does not mention the word “bullying” even though the assessment criteria cover this hazard.

As Australia moves to harmonised legislation on workplace safety issues, the harmonisation of terminology is going to be important and probably subject to lively discussion.   Continue reading “Harmonising bullying terminology extends well beyond OHS”

Eliminate the safety risk – sack the worker

A curious workplace safety and industrial relations issue has appeared in the Golden Circle factory in Queensland as reported in the Courier-Mail.  57-year-old forklift driver, Lance Pedersen has been sacked because he was found to be morbidly obese and with osteoarthritis in his knees.

The newspaper article raises many personnel management issues and there are sure to be more issues that have not been reported but a remarkable quote is reported from a company spokesperson:

“Golden Circle has an obligation to ensure the health and safety of all our employees,” the spokesman said. “We are therefore unable to continue to employ Mr Pedersen.” Continue reading “Eliminate the safety risk – sack the worker”

Eye safety campaign – a good start but shortsighted on safety

On 19 May 2010, the Optometrists Association Australia (OAA) launched a national eye safety campaign.  This campaign is worthwhile but illustrates some of the shortcomings of this type of campaign.

The OAA media release states:

“Sixty per cent of all eye injuries happen at work, .. warn optometrists who are urging every workplace to put eye safety procedures in place as part of a new national campaign.

Optometrists Association Australia (OAA) and HOYA Lens Australia will launch ‘Eye accidents change lives forever’ a comprehensive workplace eye safety campaign this week.” [links added]

The need for eye safety procedures is clear but the recommended action is too narrow.  The entire focus of the campaign is to increase awareness of eye hazards and to increase the usage of safety eyewear.  There is no focus on the reduction of the hazard itself, just the protection of the worker’s eyes. Continue reading “Eye safety campaign – a good start but shortsighted on safety”

Shiftwork saviour? – Caffeine (sort of)

Caffeine is a commonly used stimulant in many workplaces around the world.  As such, it is often considered to be the friend of the shift worker and a new analysis of research findings may make that friendship stronger.

According to a new study from Cochrane researchers:

“The results of this systematic review suggest that caffeine may be effective in improving performance in persons engaged in shift work or suffering from jet lag, although it may not be possible to confidently translate such an improvement in performance to a reduced injury risk.” Continue reading “Shiftwork saviour? – Caffeine (sort of)”

Non-fatal injuries summary

Below is a summary of non-fatal workplace incidents handled by Victoria’s Metropolitan Ambulance Service over the last few weeks.

Many of these incidents gain no media attention principally due to the fact that the workers did not die but the incidents are of relevance ot safety professionals and provide a better perspective on the frequency of workplace incidents.

Hand injuries

The first case saw advanced life support paramedics from Footscray called to an Altona North address at 8am.

The Paramedic, Cameron Joyce, said when they arrived they were told the 42-year-old woman had been working with machinery when the accident happened.  “‘The woman told us that the fingers on her left hand were crushed for only two or three seconds. Continue reading “Non-fatal injuries summary”

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