The South Australian Parliament will be the first in Australia to be presented with a Work Health and Safety Bill based on the model National OHS laws. The Work Health and Safety Bill 2011 will be tabled in parliament on 7 April 2011, according to a media release from the South Australian Minister for Industrial … Continue reading “South Australia is the first to table a new WHS bill”
The debate on OHS laws will be passionate in the pre-election frenzy of New South Wales but the OHS law reform is a national strategy and the safety debate is not asleep in the other States. On 11 February 2011, AAP ran an article about the long-lasting familial and social effects a horrible workplace incident in South Australia … Continue reading “Important OHS and legal issues in findings of South Australian Coroner into young man’s death”
The awarding of safety awards by government OHS authorities in Australia have needed reviewing for some time. There remains inconsistencies on the openness of the judging processes and differences in award categories. In 2009, John Holland’s award nomination was withdrawn and now, according to the a video report on TV program Today Tonight in Adelaide, another safety award has been withdrawn. … Continue reading “Harsco’s safety award rescinded due to anomalies in injury claims data”
A recent prosecution by SafeWorkSA illustrates an odd situation but one of considerable importance. The media release of 15 December 2010 reports on the the penalties given to Hermes Precisa Pty Ltd (A$24,600) and Salmat Document Management Solutions Pty Ltd (A$22,400) for breaches of OHS law in May 2008. The circumstances of the offence are: ” A … Continue reading “Make buying a business a safe choice”
Any optimism that one may have felt over the appointment of Cath Bowtell as the executive director of WorkSafe Victoria may be very short-lived if the reports on the cover of The Age newspaper are to be believed. The Age reports that Cath Bowtell is the frontrunner for a seat in the Australian Parliament following … Continue reading “Safety needs to be seen to be more than politics”
The Quin Investment prosecution in South Australia is a good indication of the importance of workplace safety and equipment maintenance. On 24 June 2010, Quin Investments and one of its directors Nikolai Kuzub were found guilty of breaches of OHS law in South Australia by Industrial Magistrate Ardlie. The incident involved an explosion at an explosives factory … Continue reading “Explosive impacts from the Quin Investments prosecution still to be felt”
Australian trade unions, particularly those in the construction sector, have strongly supported Ark Tribe in his battle with the Australian Building & Construction Commission (ABCC). Outside of the world of Australian construction trade union politics, the Ark Tribe issue has been difficult to understand without over-simplifying the issue. In 2008, Ark Tribe attended a union … Continue reading “What does the Ark Tribe case have to do with workplace safety?”