The Commonwealth safety watchdog has released for public comment the Australian Work Health and Safety Strategy 2012-2022. The paper represents the framework for work health and safety in the nation for the next decade, Safe Work Australia Chair Tom Phillips encouraged workers, employers and policy makers across Australia to be involved with the development of this …
Workplace Health and Safety Queensland has published a new guide to promote safety in the rural sector. The guide, an overview for the rural industry of the Queensland Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011, is designed to help rural industry employers and workers understand their health and safety duties in the workplace. Queensland …
WorkCover NSW has issued an alert to remind workers of the potential dangers when using rotating machinery. Background WorkCover has in recent weeks been advised of several incidents where workers have been seriously injured as a result of entanglement in rotating machinery. Such incidents include the following: A worker received serious hand injuries using a …
Following an investigation by WorkCover NSW, a paper mill near Canberra was fined $170,000 over a safety breach in which two workers suffered serious chemical burns. Two employees of the mill at Tumut, about 100 kilometres west of the ACT, were seriously injured during routine maintenance work in 2008. The men were working on the …
Following a prosecution by Comcare, the federal work health and safety regulator, the Federal Court has imposed on a company the maximum civil penalty of $242,000 for a breach of its general duty of care requirements under the Commonwealth OHS Act (the old occupational health and safety regime). The fine followed the death of a mine worker in …
Following an investigation by WorkCover NSW, the NSW Industrial Court has this week fined a major supermarket chain $170,000 after a worker was injured when she fell through a ceiling at a Manly store in 2007. The 42-year-old worker climbed over a handrail to access promotional material being stored on a suspended plasterboard ceiling. The …
Nominations for the Work Safety Awards Western Australia 2012 are now open. WorkSafe WA Commissioner Lex McCulloch said on Tuesday that the Awards were an opportunity to gain valuable acknowledgment of excellent safety management, solutions and innovations in Western Australian workplaces. “The Work Safety Awards Western Australia are a chance for individuals, groups, organisations and …
A major energy company is appealing against Fair Work Australia’s (FWA) decision to limit the company’s drug testing rights. The company’s stance has received support from employers, but unions have expressed concern. The company lodged its appeal last week soon after FWA determined the company could test saliva but not urine in its drug and …
Thousands of workers who have died in the course of their work will be remembered this week on International Workers Memorial Day. The National Safety Council of Australia advises that memorials will be held around Australia on Friday and Saturday to commemorate those who have died from work-related injury and disease. Official work-related fatality statistics …
A project to commemorate people who have been killed in industrial accidents was launched on the 20th April by Minister for Industrial Relations, Russell Wortley. Families of South Australians who lost their lives as a result of workplace accidents have supported the project to create a special quilt which will tour the State to increase …
A hearing is underway in the ACT Coroner’s Court to determine how a Canberra truck driver died when he was crushed by a crane. The 57-year-old was killed three years ago during an early morning job picking up large waste bins at the Evatt shops. He suffered severe neck and chest injuries when the arm …
A woman is suing Queensland Health for an unspecified amount, claiming that hospital emergency staff misdiagnosed a severed tendon in her leg. The woman suffered a deep gash to her leg during a workplace accident in January this year. She went to Wynnum Hospital for treatment, but said staff in the emergency department did not …
Prolonged sitting is a significant risk factor for poor health and early death among workers. Sitting for a long time may increase your chances of dying within three years, even if you are physically active. A new study involving more than 200,000 participants was conducted in the University of Sydney, revealing that people who sit …
Minister for Finance & Services, Greg Pearce released on Monday an issues paper and announced a parliamentary committee as the next steps in reforming WorkCover. According to Mr Pearce, the scheme had a deficit of more than $4 billion and would soon be unable to help injured workers get back to work unless changes are …
WorkSafe has issued an alert following an incident this morning where a man has undergone surgery after being struck by a forklift at Morwell. The truck driver was standing near the front of his vehicle when the reversing forklift hit him. Today’s incident comes after three companies were prosecuted in the past week as a …
WorkSafe Victoria is advising that if workers hold a high risk work licence (issued after 1 July 2007), they will receive a renewal notice from WorkSafe three months before the expiry date. If you’ve changed your contact details or name and do not receive a renewal notice, you should contact the WorkSafe Advisory Service for …
Photo: WorkCover NSW WorkCover NSW issues safety alert on the safe use of nail guns to remind users to prevent their guns from inadvertently discharging while they are using them. It also aims to remind nail gun users to prevent nails from inadvertently ricocheting and hitting persons or penetrating other surfaces. Nail guns are a …
The state government has launched an independent inquiry into a contaminated Pacific highway worksite. Highway workers near Port Macquarie became nauseous and some started vomiting after excavation exposed contaminated soil. It is near where a truck carrying radioactive waste and other chemicals crashed in 1980. The Roads and Maritime Service says tests have not detected …
A heavy duty mechanic was fined $2000 plus $1200 in costs after an apprentice suffered serious injuries when a bus slipped off a jack on him. The mechanic pleaded guilty to failing to take reasonable care to avoid adversely affecting the safety and health of another person and was fined in the Midland Magistrates Court …
The O’Farrell government will cut back on workers compensation by slashing lump-sum payments for injured workers and abolishing long-term recipients of weekly benefits from the scheme after a set period. The NSW government has flagged its intention to amend the $13 billion WorkCover system, which is currently facing a deficit of up to $5 billion …
Shift workers who experience ‘body-clock disruption’ due to sleep deprivation, could be at greater risk of developing diabetes and weight problems. A new study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine revealed that workers who are not getting enough sleep could develop diabetes and associated weight problems. The study involved 21 people, whose daily activities, …
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