Late yesterday four adults were killed on the Thunder River Rapids ride at the Dreamworld theme park in Queensland Australia. Investigations are ongoing and it was only recently that the names of some of the victims were released. The first few days after any fatality are confusing as new information is uncovered, old concerns are … Continue reading “Early speculation and reporting on theme park deaths is unhelpful”
Every profession and occupation has its weird stories, the “you wouldn’t believe it” stories. Occupational health and safety (OHS) is no different. There are stories of a degloved penis, complications from piercings in private places or chemical burns on private parts that reinforce the important of washing hands thoroughly after touching chemicals. Such stories can be …
Barry Naismith‘s third report into the operations and performance of WorkSafe Victoria was released on July 22, 2014. Naismith produces these reports through a combination of publicly available information in the press, a dive into the resources of the WorkSafe Library (visit before it moves to Geelong) and requests to WorkSafe. This level of analysis … Continue reading “Independent analysis of WorkSafe Victoria”
Australian law firm Minter Ellison has produced a useful article (not yet available on their website) on a recent workplace bullying prosecution. However the document displays a perspective that is becoming increasingly common in Australia labour law practices....
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 …
On March 30 2016, the Andrew Victorian Government released the final report of the Royal Commission into Family Violence. Family violence, otherwise known as domestic violence, is not strictly an occupational health and safety (OHS) but the mental health effects can flow into the workplace and, some argue, fails to deter family violence. The final …
The Victorian Government has concluded the public hearing section of its inquiry into Labour Hire. Industrial Relations Minister Natalie Hutchins has said in a media release that “Evidence has been put to the inquiry suggesting widespread underpayment of award wages, tax avoidance, nonpayment of superannuation, poor occupational health and safety practices, maltreatment of workers and backpackers on …