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OHS Canaries and Apathy

Guest author, Yossi Berger writes:

“What’s the point of tellin’ them the same thing over and over when nothin’ changes? I open my mouth about safety again I could lose me job” he said, “Why would I bother?”[a]

Introduction

Words and names can be used as sneaky accomplices to construct popular or inaccurate narratives. When such constructions are used as explanations of workers’ behaviour and presumed attitudes they can misdirect occupational health and safety (OHS) programs. An example is the frequently heard ‘workers’ apathy’ explanation of poor OHS standards. The important UK 1972 Robens Report on OHS noted:

”….our deliberations over the course of two years have left us in no doubt that the most important single reason for accidents at work is apathy”.[1]

It’s 2009 and some of this in various guises[b] still obscures simple facts at work.

I believe that choosing the banner of ‘apathy’[c] as an explanation of poor OHS standards was and continues to be inaccurate. Continue reading “OHS Canaries and Apathy”

Yesmanship – the biggest threat to safety culture

The recent release of a new book on Operation Mincemeat has again raised the term “yesmanship” in the media. Online definitions explain the term as

“An atmosphere in which people claim to agree with leadership for political reasons, even when they don’t actually agree with leadership” .

The significance of the term in relation to the current trend of “safety culture” should not be underestimated. Below are some definitions of safety culture that illustrate the similarities to or risk from yesmanship.

“The product of individual and group values, attitudes, perceptions, competencies, and patterns of behaviour that determine the commitment to, and the style and proficiency of, an organization’s health and safety management” Continue reading “Yesmanship – the biggest threat to safety culture”

OHS challenges face the Australian taxi industry

The New South Wales Parliamentary has released the findings of its inquiry into the State’s taxi industry. Although OHS was not the focus of the inquiry, “working conditions” were included in the terms of reference and the report has made some safety recommendations. The taxi industry requires an innovative approach to OHS implementation in order to meet future driver and passenger demands.

The Committee has called for

“…an increased emphasis on occupational health and safety, industrial issues and insurance rights to better inform taxi drivers of their entitlements and responsibilities…”

even though the NSW Taxi Council stated that existing training exceeded national training standards. Perhaps the range of stakeholders consulted by the Council needs reviewing. Clearly training has been deficient in reality even if it matches national benchmarks. This calls into question one’s reliance on national training standards. Continue reading

A safe (social) system of work

For years Australian OHS legislation has focused on establishing a “safe system of work”. This focus is inclusive and is an understandable approach to safety regulation but it has also generated a fair share of confusion. If a business does not have a documented safety management system, does it have a system of work? Yes it does but the lack of documentation makes it very difficult to describe, particularly if there is a performance benchmark such as “compliance”. Humans like to have a clean line of cause and effect or a linear, causative management process. So vague concepts like “system of work” can be challenging.

Prescriptive rules used to be the way that safety compliance could be met but that world is long gone. Its distance can be seen by looking at the Australian Government’s new model Work Health and Safety Act which compounds the vagueness by including “as far as reasonably practicable” wherever possible. All of this vagueness makes the lot of the business operator more complex and more costly as the business operator seeks clarity from others such as lawyers, OHS consultants, auditors and Standards organizations. Is it any wonder that safety is seen as an exorbitant cost? In essence, OHS regulators have outsourced the responsibility, and the cost, to employers. Continue reading “A safe (social) system of work”

Army notice on asbestos bags is warning for all workplaces

Various sectors of the Australian media have been reporting on the potential use of asbestos-tainted sacks by Australian soldiers and Defence personnel. Asbestos exposure is a recurring risk for the Australian armed services due to items in use, such as the dummy, and the existence of asbestos in various buildings.

The issue of asbestos persisting in sacks was given prominence in the last 12 months by ABC journalist Matt Peacock in his book “Killer Company”. Peacock reported that inadequately cleaned sacks were reused as carpet underlay in Australia and for other purposes. Continue reading “Army notice on asbestos bags is warning for all workplaces”

OHS regulator reveals a blog about OHS fraud and crime

Spying on people can be entertaining as can be shown by the popularity of hidden camera video on tabloid news shows but there is always a whiff of unfairness and distaste about the practice.

For the last couple of months, Washington State’s Department of Labour & Industries has been running a blog written by its Fraud Prevention and Compliance Manager, Carl Hammersburg. The blog matches the remit of the regulatory authority and covers a range of industrial enforcement actions. Occasionally it has included its own video surveillance of potential workers’ compensation fraudsters.

On 28 April 2010, the blog,called “Nailed“, included video of Frankie Day who, as a resulted on the L&I investigation, was found guilty of theft and then jailed. Continue reading “OHS regulator reveals a blog about OHS fraud and crime”

Clarification on Andrew Hopkins and the US Commission of Inquiry

FutureMedia has finally issued a clarification on its claim that Professor Andrew Hopkins was nominated for the US Commission of Inquiry into the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill as discussed at SafetyAtWorkBlog on 3 June 2010. It advises that it took its nomination story from comments by the “former Research Director of the US Chemical Safety Board” and apologises “for any confusion caused by the press release” but has not granted permission for the clarification to be republished here

Futuremedia has distributed the correction to the same recipients of the original media release for their consideration.

SafetyAtWorkBlog contacted the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) directly, as Futuremedia did not divulge the source for the inaccurate information in its media release. Continue reading “Clarification on Andrew Hopkins and the US Commission of Inquiry”

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OHS Canaries and Apathy

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Yesmanship – the biggest threat to safety culture

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A safe (social) system of work

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Army notice on asbestos bags is warning for all workplaces

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OHS regulator reveals a blog about OHS fraud and crime

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Clarification on Andrew Hopkins and the US Commission of Inquiry

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