On 30 September 2009 the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the United States said in a media statement: A proposed rule to align the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) with provisions of the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) will be published in the … Continue reading “GHS is coming to the United States”
SafetyAtWorkBlog has been informed that the current CEO of the Safety Institute of Australia (SIA), Gary Lawson-Smith, has accepted an invitation to join the WorkSafe Victoria’s OHS Advisory Committee (OHSAC), as a representative of the SIA. This is a terrific win for the SIA as it adds a degree of legitimacy to the organisation’s developing … Continue reading “Safety Institute gets a seat at the OHSAC table”
A while ago I had a gig where one of the aspects of the job was researching how safety signs work, are read and responded to. Here’s a snapshot of some facts and fiction about safety signs. Fact: If people don’t know the reason for a safety sign, they will probably ignore it. A safety … Continue reading “Safety signs – fact and fiction”
Every industry has jargon. A common language and common terms can build companionship and solidarity. But when used outside a “discipline” it reduces the effectiveness of communication. The mis-application of jargon can generate confusion and is, in many areas, being purposely used to hide meanings. Sadly in the safety profession, jargon is used to mask … Continue reading “Safety industry jargon”
SafetyAtWorkBlog has had a tremendous response to the article concerning Working Hours and Political Scandal. Below are some of the issues raised in some of the correspondence I have received from readers and OHS colleagues. The Trade Union Congress Risk e-bulletin has a similar public service/mental health case which has been resolved through the Courts. … Continue reading “OHS and workload – follow-up”
The National Research Centre for Occupational Health and Safety Regulation at the Australian National University is one of the few Australian research centres who provide free access to their data. The number is growing but is still way behind institutions overseas. The latest research report they have released concerns management-based regulations as opposed to prescriptive … Continue reading “New OHS research on the limits of management based regulation”
The Cochrane Library has long been a good source of research information. Recently, the library undertook reviews of some of the seasonal influenza intervention and have produced a short podcast on the research. Also, the Library looked at noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). The importance of this condition is high due to the damage being irreparable. … Continue reading “Research review of influenza and noise-induced hearing loss”