The new initiative of Worksafe Victoria, placing CEOs undercover in their own workplaces, is a major change of direction and should produce a considerable amount of attention. The online campaign, called The Skeleton Project, ostensibly applies the “Undercover Boss” concept to musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs) and workplace safety more generally. Elsewhere SafetyAtWorkBlog has mentioned that the … Continue reading “CEOs go undercover over workplace safety”
The 6th annual Safe Work Australia awards concluded a couple of hours ago. The event was an opportunity to meet Australians prominent in the safety profession, celebrate innovation and to acknowledge individual efforts. The winners’ achievements were largely significant but there are problems with the OHS award processes across Australia and the Safe Work Australia … Continue reading “Australian safety awards are important but require rebooting”
Recent attention on the presentation of the Crimes Amendment (Bullying) Bill 2011 to the Victorian Parliament has, understandably, focussed on the changes to the criminal code. However some of that attention should also have been given to the existing rules and control measures under workplace law, particularly considering that the proposed amendments, commonly referred to … Continue reading “Brodie’s Law on bullying needs more consideration for workplace application”
Victoria’s largest OHS conference and trade show has ended. The shadow of the impending harmonisation of OHS laws hung over both events. The OHS message throughout the conference was one of nothing to worry about. WorkSafe’s Ian Forsythe felt that Victoria was well-placed for minimal disruption as the OHS laws in that State had … Continue reading “Dis-harmonisation over OHS laws”
Last week, Honda quad bike dealers were supplied with the safety code provided by the Federated Chamber of Automotive Industries. This code outlines research that shows some roll over protection (ROPS) devices may increase the risk of injury. A major ROPS identified in recent reports is the QuadBar, a device that may be “set to … Continue reading “Industry action confuses quad bike sellers”
On 6 April 2011, at the Safety In Action conference in Melbourne, the Safety Institute of Australia and the Australian Institute of Management released the findings of their 2011 Business Survey. The 2010 survey was discussed in an earlier blog article. SafetyAtWorkBlog was allowed to see a version of the survey results prior to their public release next week but according … Continue reading “Beware OHS statistics quoted in media releases”
Over the last few months most Australian OHS regulators, and many labour law firms,have been conducting workshops and public seminars on Australia’s plans to harmonise its OHS legislation. In those workshops, the consultative process and timeframes have been described by some as a “nightmare”, which is not exactly inspiring participants who are seeking clarity from … Continue reading “Safe Work Method Statements and independent positions”