Australia’s OHS awards season has concluded with many of the same challenges it had in 2009. Most States have harmonised their awards categories so that the national OHS awards in March 2011 are fairer but the worth of some categories, listed below, remains in question. “Category 1: Best Workplace Health and Safety Management System a. Private … Continue reading “Australian OHS Awards need a review to stay relevant”
The recent conference of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) gave considerable attention to corporate social responsibility (CSR). It could be argued that this shows the ASSE is years behind many others but it could also be argued that CSR has a practical longevity in workplace safety that may have faded in other CSR … Continue reading “CSR and public health”
There are several issues in the United Kingdom at the moment that could affect workplace safety, not including Lord Young’s OHS review. Great Britain is to undergo enormous funding cuts to most of the civil service. The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) is to have its budget cut by 35% according to the Trades Union Congress … Continue reading “Do budget cuts equal cuts in safety enforcement?”
The Chris Maxwell Report into OHS in Victoria is of historical interest now but one concept in particular from the report continues to echo in OHS and Government circles – government departments and authorities as exemplars of workplace safety. The latest echo of this concept appeared in a WorkSafe Week seminar in Melbourne on 25 … Continue reading “OHS in procurement guideline should be the start and not the end”
When the Australian Government began the process of reviewing OHS laws in order to achieve harmonisation, there was a fairly tight schedule for these reforms. Draft OHS codes of practice and regulations were due in the second half of 2010. The last public statement on these public comment documents was that drafts were due for release at the end of … Continue reading “Codes and Regulations prioritized in Australia’s harmonisation process”
Professor Tony LaMontagne is an Australian researcher and academic whose work always deserves careful consideration. LaMontagne has been mentioned several times in SafetyAtWorkBlog. The significance of his work is that it is not centred on occupational health and safety but has a major relevance nevertheless. On the eve of Victoria’s Mental Health Week, LaMontagne has … Continue reading “Mental health research broadens the workplace context”
Research is intended to provide answers but sometimes it can only provide clues. But clues allow progress and flag peripheral issues that could possibly become mainstream. Social research into the possible workplace influences on suicide is one area of clues and, again, the Creative Ministries Network (CMN) has undertaken solid research into the worst-case scenario … Continue reading “Australian suicide research expands understanding of workplace factors”