On 30 August 2010, WorkSafe Victoria released a media statement about a case in a Magistrates’ Court concerning the death of a worker. Nothing new in that but in this case first aid gains a prominence that is rarely seen because in this case adequate first aid was not provided. The uniqueness of the case justifies reproducing the media release in full: “A … Continue reading “The cost of not having first aid”
For two decades now the occupational stressors/stress regulatory debate in Australia has limped along with the same arguments, same objections, same type of discussions. The same largely impractical documents mentioning psychological effects, physical effects, ‘good stress’ and what is or isn’t a disease and, of course, finger-wagging advice about risk assessments. Exactly how has all … Continue reading “I felt the job was driving me nuts: Stressors and Stress”
The OHS investigation process into the deaths of installers of insulation in Australia has led to charges being laid against Arrow Property Maintenance Pty Ltd. On 28 June 2010, Queensland’s Department of Justice and Attorney-General has charged the company with breaches of both the Electrical Safety Act 2002 and the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 following … Continue reading “More OHS charges laid over insulation installer deaths”
Rex Hoy of Safe Work Australia (SWA) spoke on 1 June 2010 at the Australian Senate Estimates hearing (around page 44) and confirmed progress on the draft OHS regulations and codes of practice. The draft Hansard reports Hoy saying: “Just to cover the areas we are working on: there will be model regulations covering administrative arrangements … Continue reading “Safe Work Australia at Senate Estimates – harmonisation latest”
In a couple of years all Australian States will probably have OHS laws which require active consultation on workplace safety matters. But how effective will the consultation be if a noticeable part of one’s workforce struggles with literacy? For many years OHS included a gentle and steady push for OHS information to be provided in Languages Other Than English (LOTE). … Continue reading “Is illiteracy a big safety risk?”
The last sixty years’ of research into the effects of hours of work, shiftwork, associated workload, fatigue and affects on social life and families has produced many findings, but no general detailed agreements. There are interesting debates about who and what to research, what methods to use, what to measure and how to interpret results. … Continue reading “All exposure standards must consider hours of work”
The Australian Government’s plans to harmonise the country’s OHS legislation will fail. In the Australian newspaper on 6 May 2010 the president of the Safety, Rehabilitation & Compensation Licensees Association, Dean Stone, said “Harmonisation was aimed at having the same law in force across the country but it is simply not going to be able to do … Continue reading “Harmonisation strategy will fail and legal costs for OHS will increase”