Tomorrow, 28 April 2010, is the International Day of Mourning, a remembrance day for those who have died at work. In Australia most of the focus will be on the memorial event in Sydney as the majority of trade union leaders are in the city for the ACTU Organising Conference. This has the potential to … Continue reading “2010 International Day of Mourning”
On 13 July 2009, Tasmania’s Minister for Workplace Relation Lisa Singh braved the elements to launch the Tasmanian Workers Commemorative Park in Launceston. The park is a work in progress and the local council is looking for support in the memorial’s completion. According to the Minister’s media release, the Park was created to honour those … Continue reading “New Worker Memorial”
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”
I don’t believe that International Workers Memorial Day (IWMD) or the World Day for Safety and Health at Work should be held on any day other than April 28 each year. I don’t think Christmas should be moved or ANZAC Day. All these days are of significant cultural importance in Australia, and each of these … Continue reading “Workplace deaths are convenient for no one”
One can never accuse politicians of deep or systems thinking on the issues and policies for which they are responsible. Victoria’s Minister for WorkSafe, Danny Pearson, spoke at a press conference on March 6, 2023, about the viability of the workers’ compensation systems, which he described as broken, during a substantial increase in claims for …
Last year the International Labour Organization (ILO) added occupational health and safety (OHS) to its Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. So what? I hear you cry. According to one trade union website: “Contrary to Conventions – which are subject to ratification by individual Member States to be applicable, all Member States (187 … Continue reading “OHS is now a fundamental human right. So what?”
Employers are less criticised about their workplace health and safety performance than the government, even though it is employers who have the primary duty of care for their workers’ occupational health and safety (OHS). The Federal (conservative) government and Prime Minister remind us regularly that the responsibility for OHS sits in the State and Territory … Continue reading “Two steps forward and one back”
