Most workers meet OHS training through short courses, perhaps even inductions. Few have the time, the desire of the finances to pursue a tertiary qualification. Australia has recently achieved a uniformity in its “card system” of OHS training for construction workers. The card concept originated from the Safety Passport used in some European industries and … Continue reading “Blue Card training needs a review”
The tricky thing about getting safety right is making sure you are on top of where the dangers are. One danger that seems to be consistently “off the safety radar” for lots of workplaces, particularly small businesses, is falls. Here’s some key stuff you need to be looking at: Rule #1 for all safety problems … Continue reading “Falling under the safety radar”
SafetyAtWorkBlog has no expertise in the control of infectious diseases. Any enquiries received on the issue are directed to the official information on government websites such as Australia’s Dept for Health & Ageing or the US Centre for Disease Control, or international authorities such as WHO. But this creates a dilemma for OHS regulators. If the … Continue reading “Influenza – dilemma for OHS regulators”
This week workplace safety on a building site received a much needed dose of humour. The Australian show “ThankGod, You’re Here” had a comedian enter a pretend building site and have to face questions from an OHS inspector as if he was the owner of the site. The sketch has added impact because of its timing. … Continue reading “Workplace safety can be funny”
Recently one of the Australian boutique labour law firms ran a seminar on employment issues related to migrant workers. Australia has a history of using workers from the Pacific Islands, principally, in agriculture. Chinese have been working in Australia since the goldfields of the 1800s. New Zealanders are so frequent that the countries almost share … Continue reading “Migrant worker safety”
At the Safety In Action Conference in Melbourne last week the CEO Of WorkSafe Victoria, John Merritt, told the delegates that over the coming weeks and months we will see the following: The “Homecomings” series of workplace safety ads have been purchased by Washington State and will be broadcast shortly. Merritt expects the campaign to … Continue reading “WorkSafe Victoria’s plans for the future”
Around 18 months ago the Victoria Government launched WorkHealth, a health prevention program that would be funded from the interest generated from the pool of workers compensation funds. SafetyAtWorkBlog has previously questioned how the program will be funded when its income source is likely to have been severely reduced due to the global economic problems. … Continue reading “Global pressures on Australian workers compensation schemes”