Occupational health and safety (OHS) returned to the Australian Parliamentary debates last week. Politicians of all persuasions mentioned the importance of workplace safety on Australian construction sites. The differences in opinions were whether the re-establishment of the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) would improve OHS performance or impede it....
2014 is going to present tough challenges to Australia’s politicians and corporate leaders. The Royal Commission into the Home Insulation Program, in particular, is going to illustrate and perhaps generate ideological conflict. The Home Insulation Program (HIP) was established quickly to address a looming economic crisis. Politicians and business leaders wanted Australia to avoid the global recession … Continue reading “Moral conflicts in store for Australian politicians and bureaucrats”
The investigation into workplace deaths associated with Australia’s Home Insulation Program (HIP) was refreshed yesterday with the publication of some of the terms of reference for a new Government inquiry into the program. The HIP deaths is an enormously politically charged issue in Australia and the politics, and associated media attention, could derail an inquiry … Continue reading “The Australian Government targets former PM, Kevin Rudd, over insulation deaths”
The harmonisation of Australia’s occupational health and safety (OHS) laws has stagnated since the West Australian government’s tepid response to the strategy and Victoria’s belligerent and ill-founded rejection. But some continue to examine the harmonisation process. Eric Windholz is one of those researchers. Windholz is a former executive of Victoria’s WorkSafe and is now with … Continue reading “Australian research on OHS harmonisation’s progress, success and errors”
28 April is the annual day of remembrance for those people who have died at work. It has various names depending on local politics but the World Day for Safety and Health at Work, established by the International Labour Organization. This year ceremonies are being held on many days around April 28. On Wednesday 24 April, Australia’s Workplace Relations Minister, … Continue reading “Australian IR Minister calls for dignity, respect and trust in workplace safety”
Following on from a look at the workplace safety-related elements of the current policy document of the Australian Labor Party, it is the Liberal Party of Australia‘s turn. The Liberals, currently lead by Tony Abbott, are the Australian equivalent of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom and the Republicans in the United States and follow many of the … Continue reading “An OHS look at the Liberal Party’s policy document”
Just before Christmas in 2009, Dr Yossi Berger speculated for an information network about the safety of quad bikes. He called it QuadWatch. Over two years later, on 13 July 2012, Australia’s Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten announced his own QuadWatch. In the 2009 Croaky Blog, Dr Berger suggested “a network could be called QuadWatch and it would become a clearing house … Continue reading “Australian Government moves on quad bike safety”