Category: transport

The Quad Bike Death That Could Have Happened Any Year

Earlier this month, I was critical of occupational health and safety (OHS) and farmers and asked

“So what can WorkSafe teach them about safety that farmers don’t already know?”

The death of dairy farmer Brad Collins following an incident involving a quad bike is the type of death that could have occurred and been reported at any time over the last few decades. Surely, a change in the cultures of farming, safety, and enforcement is required? Are we at “peak safety” on the deaths of farmers from quad bikes? Can nothing more be done?

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“She simply had too much work to do” – WorkSafe Awards 2025

Psychological safety dominated the 2025 WorkSafe Victoria Awards held in late February 2026. (At somepoint, WorkSafe is going to have to bring the awards back to the Safety Month schedule of October) This is perhaps not surprising, as psychological safety and psychosocial hazards remain hot issues in Victoria, but some other important finalists shone.

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Another Step on the Long Road to Protecting Gig Workers

On October 21, 2025, the Australian Capital Territory’s Parliament debated (page P3249) expanding workers’ compensation to gig workers. Impediments to change were similar to those mentioned in various parliamentary inquires and debates ever since gig work developed into an industry sector and gig workers started to die at work. But the amendment passed so progress was made.

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When Jurisdiction Blocks Safety Justice for Learner Drivers

Australia’s efforts to enhance the health and safety of its workers are hindered by the constitutional framework, which assigns responsibility for occupational health and safety (OHS) to local jurisdictions.

Recent comments by a Federal Minister on sexual harassment illustrate this dilemma, which is not restricted to OHS.

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Audio summary on Quad Bike Safety

I have been writing about the safety of quad bikes and all-terrain vehicles for many years. The debate over quad bike safety was one of the most complex and vicious I have ever seen. In some minds, the issue has been resolved in Australia, but farmers continue to die from these vehicles.

Below is a brief 5-minute video about some of the OHS issues associated with these vehicles. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it, especially if you think a book about the issues would be worthwhile.

The audio will be available soon on the SafetyAtWorkBlog SoundCloud feed.

SafetyAtWorkBlog followed the quad bike safety saga, and dozens of exclusive articles are available for subscribers.

The Hidden OHS Emergency Behind Victoria’s Firefighting Fleet

New documentary “Breaking Point” is a curious mix of propaganda, lobbying, whistleblowing, fear, stress, with an occupational health and safety (OHS) undertone. According to Victorian firefighters, they are being sent to fight fires and save lives with equipment that is known to be faulty—a problem that could easily be solved.

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Reading behind the rows of Australia’s injury dashboard – farm fatalities or poor choices?

Australia now has a Rural Media Farm Injury Dashboard, which shows the location of agricultural injuries and deaths from 2020 onwards. This is the type of publicly available information required to help reinforce an awareness of the dangers of farm work and demystify and destigmatise occupational health and safety (OHS) in this sector.

There are limitations, though, so one must be careful not to hyperbolise the data.

Note: This article mentions suicide.

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