Category: safety

What are the most substantial impediments to improving the health and safety of workers?

This is the second in a possible series of articles based on an artificial intelligence analysis of decades of audio interviews and recordings with occupational health and safety professionals, academics, lawyers and more used for this blog and my other writings. This time, I asked:

What are the most substantial impediments to improving the health and safety of workers?

Several substantial impediments to improving worker health and safety emerge from the conversations:

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The United States approach to work health and safety is getting creepy.

For most of the world, Donald Trump‘s re-election to the United States presidency is a non-event. Politicians and journalists are really interested, but Trump has little direct impact on our lives, and his policies, morals, and political strategies will affect us indirectly. Perhaps the most significant impact will be environmental.

Our business leaders take inspiration from American companies and corporate cultures. Even though he has yet to choose his Secretary of Labor, there are indications that occupational health and safety (OHS) is unlikely to progress under Trump’s term. It is useful to be aware of how Trumpian corporate culture and values may affect (infect?) the rest of the world.

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Hi-viz clothing is “a major cultural symbol of our time”

The Conversation offers a brief history of the introduction of high-visibility workwear to Australian workplaces. The authors, Elizabeth Humphrys, Bettina Frankham and Jesse Adams Stein, offer four reasons why ” Hi-Viz” has become a “major cultural symbol of our time” and beyond its obvious safety benefits.

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Culture of Compliance and the Fair Work Ombudsman

On the morning of day one of the Australian Labor Law Association (ALLA) National Conference, the Fair Work Ombudsman, Anna Booth, mentioned a “culture of compliance.”

She explained the culture of compliance by revealing data in several industry sectors about significant non-compliance based on the activities of the Fair Work Ombudsman inspectors. So, it’s perhaps more important to talk about a non-compliance culture rather than a compliance culture.

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ALLA and sexual harassment

To understand one’s profession, one must find out how others see it. You may think your actions are vital to the world’s survival, but if others think you are full of shit, you need to revise your strategy. Occupational health and safety (OHS) has a strong sense of its importance but is often seen by others as a nuisance, even when acknowledging its legitimacy.

The Australian Labour Law Association (ALLA) recently held its national conference in Geelong, Victoria. The conference was a curious beast.

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Two very different Safe Work Month events

In the last week of October 2024, which is Australia’s National Safe Work Month, WorkSafe Victoria held two notable webinars: “Addressing and improving health and safety issues in the workplace” and ” Prevent and manage psychosocial hazards in the workplace.” The themes were occupational health and safety (OHS), but the webinars differed greatly in content and presentation.

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Many employers remain unaware of positive duties to prevent sexual harassment at work

A new report on sexual harassment at work by Ourwatch has been reported on by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). The report says:

“…. found 40 per cent of workplace leaders surveyed were unaware of their new legal obligations to prevent workplace sexual harassment.”

Given that the core legislative obligation to prevent sexual harassment is over 40 years old, perhaps better questions could have been asked.

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