On 21 September 2010, Radio Australia’s regular program Australia Talks conducted a live interview concerning occupational safety and health. For those who have been listening to the show for some time would have been surprised that the program covered much of the same old OHS ground. Similar statistics, similar questions of what are the most dangerous occupations, similar … Continue reading “Radio National OHS program”
The need for food parcels for those on workers’ compensation seems to continue in South Australia according to a 3 July 2010 report in Adelaide Advertiser. SafetyAtWorkBlog mentioned the service being offered by Rosemary Mackenzie-Ferguson and others in March 2010. There are many areas of society that are supported by privately provided social services and this situation is likely to persist but … Continue reading “Social change through worker dignity”
On 27 May 2010, a worker at the Foxconn factory in died from overwork, according to a statement released on 4 June 2010 by SACOM. This coincides with a statement by Hon Hai Precision Industry on 6 June 2002, Hon Hai owns the Foxconn facility in Shenzhen. The SACOM statement reports: “Yan Li, 27, is … Continue reading “Foxconn worker dies of exhaustion – focus on working hours”
Foxconn, a large technology manufacturer in China has a cluster of suicides. This issue is getting more attention than normal in Western media because the company manufactures products for Apple and the Apple iPad went on sale around the world at the same time news about the suicides broke. The question that must be asked … Continue reading “Suicides in China – is this a Foxconn problem or an Apple problem?”
In 2004, I was asked to make an OHS-themed presentation to a group of paramedic students on ethics and from a small business perspective. Some of the information may have dated slightly but I post this to stimulate discussion. Below is an edited version of that 2004 oral presentation: Quite often, when we have an … Continue reading “A discussion on ethics and OHS decision making”
A media report in The First Post on 1 March 2010 includes some good news and some bad news. Apple has addressed some child labour concerns in several Chinese factories that manufacturer its products – the good news. The bad news is that children were allowed to work in these factories in the first place. … Continue reading “iPods, child labour and excessive working hours”
At The Safety Conference in Sydney in October 2009, Dr Ian Woods, a senior research analyst for AMP Capital Investors, will advise Australian employers that the cost of workplace injuries on their businesses could be around 6% of their profit. According to a media release in support of the conference Dr Woods signals three occupational … Continue reading “Injuries cost business 6% of their profit”