Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison continues to promise a return to normal but it is impossible to return to a previous point in time without denying the changes that have occurred since then. Morrison speaks of this normality in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic and may offer some understanding of his reticence to act on …
The Queensland government was the first Australian State to introduce a licencing scheme for the providers of contract workers and temporary labour. As a result, enforcement activity by the regulator there will likely set the scene for similar actions in other States particularly as Victoria has opened it public consultation on its labour hire regulations. …
Australia’s Royal Commission into the Home Insulation Program (HIP) demands the attention of all occupational health and safety (OHS) professionals, primarily, because a job creation and economic stimulus program was so poorly planned at the highest level of government, that it seems to have established a culture that led to workplace deaths. However the Royal …
Over many years OHS regulators in Australia have produced guidance notes and Codes of Practice to assist businesses in addressing the hazard of workers working alone. The new model Work Heath and Safety (WHS) Regulations due to be released with several Codes on 26 September 2011 brings the serious hazard of working alone to the front of … Continue reading “Working Alone gets regulatory boost”
One of the most difficult safety management challenges is the control of hazards associated with working alone. The most effective control is to not work alone, but the difficulty comes because this option requires expenditure. WorkSafe Victoria recently released an information sheet on this hazard and listed the following hazard control options: Buddy system Environmental design Communication … Continue reading “New OHS info on Working Alone and Occupational Violence”
In early 2010, Australia’s Heads of Workplace Safety Authorities (HWSA) established a trans-Tasman working party to look at the safety issues of quad bikes, often called all-terrain vehicles. The working group is in the final stages of its report and a major motorcycle industry representative has not liked the findings and has apparently withdrawn from the working group. A report on … Continue reading “Quad bike manufacturers walk out of safety working group”
‘Why is the most important reason for good workplace health and safety standards not at work at all?’ asks the Homecoming advertisement by implication. Because the injured or killed worker will leave his/her family behind, or harm them if they are injured or killed. S/he needs to think about them and the workplace H&S standard; … Continue reading “WorkSafe’s Homecoming Advertisements”
