The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has illustrated several matters in a recent media release – the safety of migrant labourers and the unacceptable rate of fatalities in the Australian Construction industry. Sadly these issues were mentioned in a media release protesting about the continuation of the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC). The … Continue reading “Australian unions are being distracted from OHS”
In Australia there is a purposely created commonality between the developing OHS law and industrial relations law on certain issues. Consultation is one of those matters and, although a decision by the Federal Court of Australia on 11 June 2010 relates to the Fair Work Act, safety professionals and business owners should take note. On … Continue reading “When information supply is NOT consultation”
The ramifications for corporate America and particularly, the oil industry, from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill are becoming clearer. In his 15 June 2010, address to the nation, President Obama stated his financial and operational expectations of BP prior to his meeting the company’s CEO, Tony Hayward on 16 June. In essence, BP will be required to fund … Continue reading “Off shore drilling safety will change forever”
On 7 May 2010 Judge Lacava of the County Court of Victoria increased the $A25,000 fine applied to A Bending Company to $A75,000. WorkSafe’s Acting Director for Health and Safety, Stan Krpan, said in a media release: “The fact that the Director of Public Prosecutions [DPP] found the original penalty inadequate, and the increase in … Continue reading “What is the OHS “public interest”?”
On 20 May 2010 a Victorian magistrate fined an employer over $A500,000 following a workplace prosecution. Almost all of it went to charity, according to WorkSafe Victoria. There are several issues raised by Magistrate Vandersteen’s decision: Why to charity? Why the particular charities? Why not allocate the funds to OHS-related organisations or initiatives? Why does the Magistrates’ … Continue reading “Important OHS court decisions go unreported”
Dr Yossi Berger of the Australian Workers Union has been reading some of the debate in SafetyAtWorkBlog and offered the article below for publication. He said to SafetyAtWorkBlog “…in relation to BP’s OHS catastrophes and comments about their management style, their managers and this aspirational, easily-bandied-about notion of workplace culture. Two things stimulated me to … Continue reading “The Astonished Manager: Not in my wildest dreams”
Guest contributor Jim Ward writes: Interested observers of past OHS failures would do well to pay close attention to the insights of former BP employee Ross Macfarlane in the SafetyAtWorkBlog – A personal insight into BP and the corporate approach to safety. His erudite observations of some of the underlying issues surrounding BP’s succession of … Continue reading “Leadership starts with the truth”