The United States President, Barack Obama, has officially proclaimed 28 April 2010 as Workers Memorial Day. It may be a politically appropriate announcement given the multiple fatalities that have happened recently in the United States, which the President mentions, but this should not overlook the fact that the leader of one of the most influential countries in … Continue reading “National recognition of Workers’ Memorial Day – US & UK”
Some days, politics should be kept in the background. Increasingly the International Day of Mourning is being used as a political platform, principally by the union movement. But this is discomforting and a little like anti-war protests during ANZAC Day, as happened several decades ago. International Day of Mourning, or Workers’ Memorial Day, as it … Continue reading “Unionists express anger at Australia’s approach to OHS on Workers’ Memorial Day”
For the first time in many years, I will not be able to attend the local service for the Workers’ Memorial Day on 28 April 2009. I will be attending the Safe Work Australia Awards in Canberra which, coincidentally, is on the same day. I hope that the award ceremony includes a minute’s silence to … Continue reading “How Workers’ Memorial Day should be treated”
This annual event seems to receive more attention in Europe than elsewhere although over the years several Australian capital cities have erected workers’ memorial stones. It is usually here that ceremonies occur. I always attend these services in my own right as it helps to keep me grounded as I wade through risk assessments, policies, … Continue reading “April 28 – Workers’ Memorial Day”
A short report on Day One* of the Australian Institute of Health and Safety’s (AIHS) National Conference in Melbourne. Given a previous blog article asking for new thinking, new approaches etc. Has the Day One satisfied me? Selectively, Yes. The keynote speaker, Richard De Crespigny had an extraordinary tale to tell about safely landing a …
The need for occupational health and safety (OHS) to adapt to the changing (deteriorating) global climate has long been discussed. This discussion may spike later this month with this year’s World Day of Health and Safety theme, the somewhat fatalistic “Ensuring safety and health at work in a changing climate“. Rather than look closely at …
For the first time, the International Workers’ Memorial Day in Melbourne, Victoria, occurred in a park without a memorial stone with its anachronist crucifix motif. It was also thankfully sunny. The traditional location for the event in the shadow of Trades Hall was sometimes bitterly cold. The changed location was the most obvious difference to …
