When Safe Work Month Shrinks and Psychosocial Hazards Expand

WorkSafe Victoria used to launch National Safe Work Month (or Safe Work Week as it started out) in a big way in Melbourne. They tried something similar when it relocated to Geelong, but this year, there was nothing of the same magnitude. There was some strong publicity benefit from having a big half- to full-day …

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Holding Space for the Ridiculous in Workplace Health and Safety

One of the most divisive speakers at last week’s Research Summit organised by Safe Work Australia was futurist Reanna Browne. Some delegates found her approach to research to be offensive. Others thought she was granted too much time. Some were confused....

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The 38-Hour Week is not a Myth—It’s an Ignored Safeguard

Safe Work Australia’s recent Research Summit conducted several workshops. Time allowed delegates to only attend two of the eight – a morning and an afternoon. The standout seminar I attended was for “Work as a determinant of our psychological health”....

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A Fair Day’s Work: Leisure, Safety, and the Politics of Time

Recently, I read Sean Scalmers’ new book “A Fair Day’s Work“. Last week, Scalmer spoke at a lunchtime lecture. There were two questions that I posed in the online seminar, but neither was answered at the time. Thankfully, he responded to me directly....

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“reinvigorated in nerve and muscle” – working hours and OHS

Prominent in some of Australia’s political and economic debates are issues related to hours of work. This may be associated with the four-day work week, the five-day work week in construction, working from home, or the general debate about productivity, whatever definition you prefer, and there are many. With the political backdrop of the government’s …

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Construction Safety Reform Begins When Government Commits

The Construction Industry Culture Taskforce (CICT) has released a significant report about the pilot projects for its Culture Standard for the Construction Industry. It claims some significant changes in productivity, diversity and occupational health and safety (OHS). According to a media release by the Australian Constructors Association (ACA) accompanying the report:...

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The OHS advantages of working from home are being ignored in preference to political point scoring

Last weekend, at the Victorian branch of the Australian Labour Party conference, delegates heard that the ability to work from home for part of the working week was so important and so good for workers and the economy that working from home should become a formal right. This coincided with a week of frothy outrage …

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