On Sunday 23 May 2016, Queen’s Counsel Ross Ray died after being pinned under a rolled over quad bike on his Victorian hobby farm. According to one early media report, he was not wearing a helmet nor was his quad bike fitted with a crush protection device (CPD). In the past he has represented quad bike … Continue reading “Irony in tragedy masks an interesting legal career”
In May 2016, the Safety Institute of Australia (SIA) and Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) held their annual safety breakfast. The speakers were the usual blend of WorkSafe representative, SIA, Herbert Smith Freehills and remuneration survey results but there is always bits of useful information for the old hands and a lot of information for new … Continue reading “Breakfast seminar provides OHS tidbits”
Recently, through LinkedIn, a Human Resources (HR) professional wrote an article that busted some myths about workplace bullying. It is a useful article but also illustrates that HR and occupational health and safety (OHS) still have some way to go before providing a coordinated approach to workplace bullying and the mental health issues that contribute … Continue reading “Workplace Bullying needs a broad and integrated approach”
The Australian Treasurer, Scott Morrison, released his 2016 Budget in early May 2016. The principal aim of the Budget and Liberal Party election campaign announced on 8 May 2016 is to create “jobs and growth”. Every one of those jobs should be a safe job for many reasons other than saving lives, but none of …
WorkSafe Victoria has often been a leader in advertisements about occupational health and safety (OHS). It has had mixed success since its Homecoming campaign, as it tries different strategies in the vital social media and internet communication world. It’s latest campaign, Work Safe For Mum, has been running for around a week before Australia’s Mother’s … Continue reading “What better way to thank your Mum than by staying safe at work?”
It seems to be increasingly important for occupational health and safety (OHS) to focus on the human and the humanity of the worker but this seems out of touch with the world of Human Resources (HR) and recruitment that is increasingly being dominated by impersonal algorithms. Recently BBC’s Global Business program looked at Recruitment By Algorithm. According to Global … Continue reading “Could safety by algorithms be next?”
New Zealand’s Safeguard magazine is a long-standing institution. Recently it undertook its first ever Safety State of the Nation survey. The results are interesting and should provide a format for Australia and other countries or publishers to follow. Cross border comparisons could be fascinating. Safeguard’s editor Peter Bateman says in a media statement: “Given all …