In July 2007, I interviewed Michael Licenblat on the issues of workplace stress for the SafetyAtWork podcast. Although the audio quality is not of a professional standard, it is worth revisiting Licenblat’s words as he discusses hours of work, particularly in light of the latest report by the Australian Medical Association on doctors and fatigue. … Continue reading “2007 interview on working hours, stress and resilience”
Last week Professor Rod McClure of the Monash Injury Research Institute urged Australian safety professionals to look at the ecology of safety and injury prevention. By using the term “ecology” outside of the colloquial, he was advocating that we search for a universal theory of injury prevention. In short, he urged us to broaden our … Continue reading “Evidence of the need to change how and why we work”
The latest edition of the Journal of Occupational Medicine (JOM) (Vol 61. No 5 Aug 2011) includes a short article on the occupational impact of climate change, an issue that must be addressed in the work context and one that places additional challenges for those involved with safe design. The JOM article lists the following … Continue reading “OHS will eventually need to address the big climate change impacts”
The Australian newspaper reports today (26 July 2011) of a clash between the Construction Forestry Mining & Energy Union (CFMEU) and BHP Billiton over fatigue management. Fatigue management is one of the workplace hazards scheduled for a draft code of practice under the OHS harmonisation process. The CFMEU believes that the current mining-related guidance is inadequate. “The Construction Forestry … Continue reading “Fatigue dispute illustrates ideological clash”
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?”
One of the most powerful motivators for behavioural change in workplaces is the legislative obligation on employees to not put themselves at risk of injury nor to act in such a way as to place others at risk. Reported in the Australian media on 31 March 2010, Fair Work Australia has ruled that employees in … Continue reading “Employees’ OHS responsibility and working beyond the maximum hours”
First aid is one of the most neglected areas of workplace health and safety but, when required , vital. The neglect comes from it rarely being integrated into the safety management system and on relying of the advice from first aid training and equipment suppliers. “Why shouldn’t it be relied on? They’re the experts.” In … Continue reading ““Best Practice…First Aid”? – not sure”