On 14 September 2009, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) released a series of radio advertisements that call on the government to not reduce the occupational health and safety conditions of Australian workers. An article about the ads with interviews with the major political players is available on ABC Radio for a short time. … Continue reading “Union opposition to Australia’s OHS laws – new radio campaign”
The New Zealand of Department of Labour is continuing its negotiations on new exposure levels for formaldehyde. The latest proposed exposure levels for formaldehyde are 0.3 ppm (8 hour TWA) and 0.6 ppm (STEL). Currently the levels in New Zealand are 1ppm (ceiling). According to US OSHA, it’s exposure standard is 1910.1048(c)(1) TWA: The employer shall assure … Continue reading “NZ proposes new exposure levels on formaldehyde”
The city in which SafetyAtWorkBlog is edited, Melbourne, is struggling to manage a spate of street violence – some racially-based, a lot influenced by alcohol and drugs. The Age newspaper carried a feature article on 25 August 2009 discussing the concept of “restorative justice”, a concept that is barely known outside of some legal or … Continue reading “Restorative Justice and workplace fatalities – Part 1”
WorkSafe Western Australia has two documents currently open for public comment. One concerns a draft code of practice for the prevention of falls from commercial fishing vessels. The other may have a wider appeal as it is a draft code of practice for the prevention and control of Legionnaires’ disease. The man overboard code … Continue reading “Public Comments – Fishing and Legionnaire’s”
WorkSafe Western Australia has announced a campaign on improving the OHS of workers in the accommodation sector for the next twelve months. The campaign is supported by a newsletter which includes a very useful safety checklist. WorkSafe WA has specified on its website, the following areas of interest: Electrical Safety – provision and testing of … Continue reading “OHS campaign on accommodation”
Sometime ago SafetyAtWorkBlog wrote that “engagement” was just a new term for “consultation”. Rebadging or rebranding occurs in the safety discipline as much as any other but our internet ears pricked up at some recent comments in a Canadian podcast from Safety Excellence. Shawn Galloway and Terry of ProACT Safety is discussing traditional approaches to … Continue reading “Behavioural-based safety is no different to traditional safety management”
Managing workplace absenteeism often ignores the OHS issues that are integral to the issue. On 20 July 2009 the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development released its findings on the issue in its annual Absence Management Survey. The media statement identifies the reasons for short- and long-term absences. “The main causes of short-term absence are … Continue reading “Absence management data misses the OHS mark”