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For the latest update on OHS News and information from across Australia. OHS News - September 2008NSW: Employee Died In Engineering AccidentMonday September 29th 2008 07:30 a.m. Source: NineMSN News A 28-year-old machinist has been killed after being dragged into a coal conveyer at an engineering complex in Sydney's south west. The Elderslie man suffered severe head injuries when he was pulled into the coal loading machine at the Narellan factory in Graham Hill Road just after 8am (AEST) on Friday. He was working with two other men on the conveyor section of the machine at the engineering complex, according to police. A WorkCover spokeswoman said from preliminary information it appeared a worker had been undertaking maintenance when a chain broke, the Camden Advertiser reported. Paramedics who were called to the site were unable to revive him. Police and WorkCover officers are investigating the incident. OHS News Tip: Engineering Safe Work Method Statements VIC: Tougher Regulations Called For After Mining AccidentMonday September 29th 2008 07:20 a.m. Source: ABC News The Australian Workers Union (AWU) says an accident at the Ballarat gold mine on Wednesday is proof the industry needs tougher regulations. Four workers inside the mine, in central Victoria, were injured on Wednesday evening when a winch cable attached to platform holding materials snapped. The men were take to the Ballarat hospital, one with a cracked rib, another with an ankle injury. The state secretary of the Australian Workers Union, Cesar Melhem, says it has been trying to gain access to the mine for 18 months. "We need to move to tougher regulations and make sure that this sort of incident is being avoided in the future," he said. WorkSafe Victoria has issued the mine an improvement notice, which it has one week to comply with. It says investigators will return to the site today. OHS News Tip: Mining Industry Safe Work Method Statements SA: Fatal Fall From BulldozerFriday September 26th 2008 07:47 a.m. A miner has died after falling from his bulldozer at a coalmine in South Australia yesterday. OHS News Tip: Commercial Construction Industry Safe Work Method Statements
WA: WorkSafe Reviews Building ManufacturersFriday September 26th 2008 07:35 a.m. WorkSafe is reviewing the prefabricated building manufacturing industry in an attempt to minimise injuries and disease in the sector. The sector manufactures temporary or transportable structures such as dongas, transportable houses, offices and classrooms. Inspectors will visit some 20 companies that manufacture prefabricated buildings to identify safety risks and provide employers with information on how to comply with OH&S laws. OHS News Tip: Commercial Construction Industry Safe Work Method Statements
TAS: Everyday 27 Workers Are Injured at WorkFriday September 26th 2008 07:30 a.m. WorkCover Tasmania has released data which reveals 9,873 Tasmanian workers were injured in workplaces across the state during 2007. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
QLD: Man Killed In Vehicle AccidentFriday September 26th 2008 07:25 a.m. Source: The Daily Failing to wear a seatbelt may have resulted in the death of a 55-year-old man from Browns Plains when he was thrown from his ute. Daniel John Wruck was driving his Suzuki ute across a rough farm track along the slope of a hill on his Mount Mee property on Wednesday afternoon when it left the road and rolled sideways. Woodford police officer-in-charge Sergeant Steve Jones said Mr Wruck was thrown from the vehicle, which then rolled over top of him. The vehicle continued to plummet a further 70 metres. Ray Williams, from Woodford Fire Services, said Mr Wruck was clearing tracks with a bulldozer when the accident occurred. The contract worker in the bulldozer alerted emergency services about 2.30pm. Emergency crews from Woodford, Caboolture and Brisbane, including a rescue helicopter, attended the scene. The incident is being investigated by Workplace Health and Safety. OHS News Tip: Vehicle Accident Work Method Statements QLD: Crackdown on Scaffolding Prompted by Workplace DeathsThursday September 25th 2008 07:20 a.m. Workplace Health and Safety Queensland has completed its review of controversial swinging stage scaffolds, after one collapsed, killing two construction workers in June. OHS News Tip: Scaffolding Work Method Statements
10th anniversary of explosion at Longford Gas Plant – 25 September 2008Wednesday September 24th 2008 07:27 a.m. Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of the explosion at the gas plant at Longford. The accident occurred on 25 September 1998, killing two workers and injuring another eight. The accident shut down gas supplies to Victoria for two weeks, affecting 1.3 million households and more than 89,000 businesses, and costing hundreds of millions of dollars. WorkSafe prosecuted Esso Australia Pty Ltd, who were convicted and fined $2 million on 30 July 2001. This remains the biggest single OHS fine in Victorian history. WorkSafe Victoria established a Major Hazards Unit in 1999, and introduced new Regulations for Hazard Facilities in 2000. These regulations required all Major Hazard Facility operators to provide a ‘Safety Case’ demonstrating how they would prevent a major incident from occurring at their facilities. Victoria’s safety case regime was the first in the world to require major hazard facilities to be licensed. A rigorous process applies to all applications for a licence, and the facilities are visited regularly by WorkSafe Inspectors. WorkSafe’s Executive Director of Health and Safety, John Merritt, said that the anniversary is an important reminder of how essential safety in the workplace is: “I think it’s important that we remember two workers lost their lives and another eight were injured in this accident. Victoria’s Major Hazard Facilities are now regulated at the highest levels in Australia, if not the world, but we must always remain vigilant and ensure the safety of workers and the public is paramount.” OHS News Tip: Working With Gas Work Method Statements VIC: Police Base Being InvestigatedTuesday September 23nd 2008 07:30 a.m. Source: The Courier The regional police communications centre D24 could be investigated for inadequate staffing levels and work conditions if no agreement is made between Victoria Police and its members. Police Association secretary designate Senior Sergeant Greg Davies said a local health and safety representative contacted WorkSafe yesterday about improving conditions at the Ballarat-based centre. The centre takes calls from the public and allocates the jobs to officers across the region. A WorkSafe spokesman was yesterday unaware of a health and safety representative issuing an improvement notice but would know within the next two days. Sen Sgt Davies said D24 moved to its current location in Mair St - at the time temporary premises - 10 years ago when the new police station opened in Dana St. He said about 15 police members worked in the centre at one time and the majority came from the police station. "They are working in a high stress situation. They answer calls from frantic people, then have to find members to go out to them," Sen Const Davies said. "Enough is enough, we have to do something about it." Sen Const Davies said the failure of the State Government to allocate funds to build a central communications complex at Mt Helen hampered the situation. He said it would be up to three more years before funds could be allocated. "It has been promised for a couple of years now. We can't keep working in this situation," he said. Sen Const Davies said WorkSafe would only investigate the situation if Victoria Police and police members could not reach an agreement. If WorkPlace do investigate D24's staffing levels and work conditions, the work place could get the all clear or be issued with a prohibition notice which would stop work until the situation is resolved. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements VIC: Sports Injury Comes Second To Road AccidentsTuesday September 23nd 2008 07:15 a.m. Source: The Age Australia is ignoring a health crisis from sports injuries, with more than a million occurring each year, sports medicine experts say. In Victoria, sport is second only to road accidents as the cause of lifelong injuries, yet it does not receive the same attention or concern as the road toll or workplace accidents. Sports Medicine Australia's chief executive, Gary Moorhead, said: "It's a commonly held view among sports medicine professionals that a lot of the knee and hip replacements that people have to have later in life may well be due to sports injuries when people were young. "The biggest problem is the injuries aren't as serious in nature but cumulatively they are as serious and the impact is experienced much later in life — they are the sort of injuries that can keep on costing." The Federal Government yesterday launched new national safety guidelines for young people to prevent sport injuries, which Minister for Sport Kate Ellis said were "a substantial drain" on the health system. Concern about sports injuries also dissuaded some parents from letting their children participate in healthy sporting activity, she said. Sports medicine experts say half of all injuries are preventable with education. "We know when most injuries occur, which is at the start of the season when people are returning to sport or returning to sport after injury," Mr Moorhead said. "A lot of it is just education about the intensity at which people can train or play at particular times of the season." For many young people, sport puts them on the road to hospital rather than glory. Football is the biggest culprit, sending nearly 4000 to hospital each year. The guidelines released yesterday aim to educate schools, coaches and parents on ways to reduce risks. They cover warm-up and cool-down exercises, preventing overuse injuries and improving the safety of equipment and grounds. But Mr Moorhead said greater efforts were needed to put across basic messages to prevent injuries. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements QLD: Family Tragedy In Crane AccidentMonday September 22nd 2008 07:25 a.m. Source: Cairns A father died and his son is battling for his life after a crane was crushed under a cement pylon at a bridge construction site near Tully yesterday. The father, a 55-year-old Gold Coast man, is believed to have been standing metres from the crane when its cab was smashed, trapping his son inside. He is believed to have been hit by part of the crane’s pole-driving equipment which came loose, hurtling towards him and killing him instantly. The son, in his 20s, was in a critical condition in Cairns Base Hospital last night battling multiple injuries to his lower body from being pinned in his seat by the cement pylon. The two piling contractors were working for Brisbane company Seymour White as part of a team contracted by Queensland Rail to upgrade a railway bridge over the Tully River at the small town of Euramo, south of Tully. They were working on replacing wooden posts with cement pylons at the southern approach to the bridge when the accident happened about 7.15am. Emergency workers arrived to find the father, who is believed to have been directing his crane-driving son from several metres away, lying on the ground near the crane where his son was trapped but still conscious. Firefighters told yesterday how the son was comforted by a good mate – who was injured by flying debris and was later treated in Tully Hospital – throughout the heart-wrenching ordeal. "He stayed there with him, talked him through it, held his hand and held him up," an ambulance spokesperson said of the hour-long rescue which took place just metres from where the trapped man’s father was killed. Rescue workers needed another crane to remove the cement column which had pinned the man to the right-hand-side of the crushed crane’s control cabin. "He was trapped by his thigh and the left-hand side of his stomach but he was still semi-conscious to conscious and was talking to us despite his obvious injuries," Tully Fire and Rescue captain John Hopgood said. Police had not released the father’s name last night. Shocked Euramo residents said the crew had been working in the tiny town, which is nestled beside the Bruce Highway, for several months. "Everyone is in shock, it’s a terrible thing to happen and our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends," Euramo Store’s Gerry Vallianos said. Seymour White would not comment on the incident yesterday, which is now being dealt with by Workplace, Health and Safety and which will become a matter for the Coroner’s Court. OHS News Tip: Crane Safe Work Method Statements VIC: New Codes to help make workplaces saferMonday September 22nd 2008 07:15 a.m. Source: WorkSafe Victoria WorkSafe Victoria has just released new Compliance Codes that provide practical guidance to those who have duties or obligations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act or Regulations. The eight Compliance Codes now available are:
WorkSafe’s Executive Director of Health and Safety, John Merritt said: “The codes were developed after extensive consultation with industry, employers, employees, governmental agencies and the community to provide greater certainty about what constitutes compliance under the OHS Act.” “The codes include practical guidance, tools and checklists to make it easier for duty-holders to fulfil their legal obligations.” Mr Merritt added that: “These codes will provide Victorian employers, workers and Health and Safety Representatives with certainty and assistance in meeting their responsibilities.” Copies of the Compliance Codes are available online at worksafe.vic.gov.au or by calling the Advisory Service on 1800 136 089. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements AU: New Proposed Work Safety BodyFriday September 19th 2008 07:40 a.m. Source: The Sydney Morning Herald The federal government's proposed new body to oversee work safety has too many bureaucrats and two few workers, the opposition says. Deputy opposition leader Julie Bishop told parliament that she broadly supported the government's push for nationally consistent workplace safety and workers' compensation systems. But it was hard to imagine a worse body to achieve it than Safe Work Australia. Ms Bishop was speaking on a bill to set up Safe Work Australia as the body to end complex and costly inconsistencies in occupational health and safety and workers' compensation laws around Australia. It replaces the Australian Safety and Compensation Council which was set up by the previous Howard government. The new body would have only four representatives of employers and employees, compared with six on the council, Ms Bishop said. Safe Work Australia would be dominated by state governments and their bureaucrats who already had poor records on cooperation. Bureaucrats would outnumber people who actually did the work. The body's makeup would make it easier states to undermine harmonisation for their own political gain. Safe Work Australia was "botched policy" which could cause more problems than it solved, Ms Bishop said. However the coalition would not oppose it in the house. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements WA: Improved Safety On Construction SitesFriday September 19th 2008 07:35 a.m. Fall prevention measures on construction sites have improved in regional Western Australia, according to the Department of Employment and Consumer Protection. However, WorkSafe WA says only 35 per cent of the sites inspected were fully compliant with the law and there is room for improvement, given the construction industry has the highest number of injuries and fatalities in the workplace. OHS News Tip: Commercial Construction Safe Work Method Statements
NT: Failure To Conduct Safety Checks Results In Record FineFriday September 19th 2008 07:29 a.m. A mining company has been fined $432,000 for the death of a worker, Northern Territory's largest workplace accident fine. OHS News Tip: Painting Safe Work Method Statements
QLD: Company fined $66,000 for Chemical LeakFriday September 19th 2008 07:20 a.m. A manufacturer which operates a gas distribution and dry ice business has been ordered to pay more than $66,600 following a major sulphur dioxide leak from its plant last year. Sulphur dioxide is a common pollutant to which the community is exposed every day at very low levels. Its effects can be dangerous in larger quantities. OHS News Tip: Chemical Handling Safe Work Method Statement
NSW: Robots improve worker conditions on production lineFriday September 19th 2008 07:10 a.m. Hand-packing 3000 polyethylene bottles an hour takes its toll on worker's health and safety. The human costs of hand-packing 60,000 bottles a day in 250ml and 500ml sizes and in five different colours was manifested in the number of workersÕ compensation claims made against the company for repetitive strain injury (RSI). A new invention by ABB Australia, which in part replaces workers with robots, has seen job efficiency increase by some 40 per cent at Power Plastics and simultaneously improved the health conditions of its line workers. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
AU: New Proposed Work Safety BodyThursday September 18th 2008 07:40 a.m. Source: The Sydney Morning Herald The federal government's proposed new body to oversee work safety has too many bureaucrats and two few workers, the opposition says. Deputy opposition leader Julie Bishop told parliament that she broadly supported the government's push for nationally consistent workplace safety and workers' compensation systems. But it was hard to imagine a worse body to achieve it than Safe Work Australia. Ms Bishop was speaking on a bill to set up Safe Work Australia as the body to end complex and costly inconsistencies in occupational health and safety and workers' compensation laws around Australia. It replaces the Australian Safety and Compensation Council which was set up by the previous Howard government. The new body would have only four representatives of employers and employees, compared with six on the council, Ms Bishop said. Safe Work Australia would be dominated by state governments and their bureaucrats who already had poor records on cooperation. Bureaucrats would outnumber people who actually did the work. The body's makeup would make it easier states to undermine harmonisation for their own political gain. Safe Work Australia was "botched policy" which could cause more problems than it solved, Ms Bishop said. However the coalition would not oppose it in the house. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements VIC: New Aim To Make Schools SaferThursday September 18th 2008 07:30 a.m. Source: WorkSafe Victoria New guidance to help make Victorian schools safer for teachers, students and school communities has been launched by WorkSafe. WorkSafe’s Executive Director, John Merritt, said the guide, OHS in schools- a practical guide for school leaders, was designed to provide practical advice for those who have a safety role in schools. More than 9000 work-related injuries have been reported to WorkSafe from schools over the past five years. Nearly one-third related to manual handling; slips trips and falls account for another 20%; and stress accounts for 19%. Mr Merritt said the overwhelming majority of injuries could be prevented. “This guide is a tool to help school leaders, teachers, school councils and health and safety representatives make their schools as safe as they can be. “In the education environment it begins with those who set the policies and procedures and flows through to the individual workplaces and people.” “Building simple safety measures into the daily operation of the school means that safety issues are not onerous or hard to deal with, and people with a leadership role are in the best position to use their influence to produce the best safety outcomes.” Mr Merritt said safety failings affected more than just the person affected. “Schools are close-knit communities. Injuries to a teacher, office worker, cleaner or parent affects more than the person directly involved. “If they’re an employee they have to be replaced or other people’s workloads will have to be re-organised. The overall school community can be affected for an extended period. “In cases of serious traumatic injuries, the emotional impact can be enormous especially for students.” OHS News Tip: Safe Work Method Statements VIC: Helping employers in Melbourne’s south support older workersThursday September 18th 2008 07:20 a.m. Source: WorkSafe Victoria WorkSafe Victoria is hosting an interactive forum next Tuesday 23 September aimed at helping employers in Melbourne’s south and south eastern suburbs better understand how they can safely return mature-aged workers back to work after injury or illness. From July 2002 to 30 December 2007, the regions of Monash, Kingston, Bayside, Glen Eira, Greater Dandenong, Frankston and Mornington Peninsula reported a combined total of over 32,600 claims, costing nearly $528 million in treatment, rehabilitation and compensation costs. The session will provide local employers and Return to Work Coordinators with information about ways in which they can safely return older workers to the workforce, including strategies that can help reduce the risks of injury and improve the timeframes for return to work. A panel involving Latrobe University Lecturer, Michael Sainsbury, Sally Kane from Varian, a local employer in the manufacturing industry, and WorkSafe, will ensure employers in the area have an opportunity to have their questions answered. According to WorkSafe Executive Director, Mr Len Boehm, “One of the major challenges facing all employers – whether large or small – is how to respond to the impacts on their business of an ageing population. “Helping an injured worker get back to work not only assists in the early recovery and rehabilitation of the worker, it reduces productivity losses and minimises the impact on an employer’s workplace injury insurance costs. “Helping injured workers return to work in a safe and sustainable way can be a complex process and older workers need as much support as any other worker.“ The Southern Employer Return to Work Network will be held on Tuesday 23 September at 2.00pm at Quality Inn Baton Rouge in Rowville. OHS News Tip: Safe Work Method Statements VIC: Company Fined Over $66,600 For Chemical LeakWednesday September 17th 2008 07:20 a.m. Source: Star News A Sunshine North manufacturer has been ordered to pay more than $66,600 to local environment groups after a major sulphur dioxide leak from its plant last year. OHS News Tip: Chemical Handling Safe Work Method Statements SA: Anxiety Becomes A Long-Term Issue For Detention Centre StaffTuesday September 16th 2008 07:30 a.m. Source: ABC News More than 60 former staff at Australian immigration detention centres have reported long-term mental health problems associated with the stress of the job. The ABC1's Four Corners has revealed 62 cases of mental illness among former guards at the Woomera and Baxter detention centres in South Australia. The program documented the impact on staff of riots and violence among detainees in recent years. One former guard is suing for damages, and the former managers of the centres could face a series of other claims. A doctor employed at Woomera, Simon Lockwood, says years on he is still counselling many former staff. "I saw severe depression. I saw post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders," he said. "I saw a lot of alcohol abuse - people would drink to try and cope with what they saw. "I saw a lot of relationship difficulties and marriage break-ups and it was a very toxic environment for a lot of the officers." Several former employees, including Clive Skinn, say the ongoing riots and violence damaged their own lives as much as it did the detainees. "I was on WorkCover for 18 months and then I tried to do myself in four times over it actually," Mr Skinn said. "The only thing that kept me going was me kids and ... it's something I never ever want to see or do again. I don't recommend it to anyone." The former guards say they were given inadequate training to deal with the violence and challenges the job involved. One former manager at Woomera, Allan Clifton, says most guards were not equipped to deal with the conditions. "The majority of officers, given that they were poorly trained, were very, very good people who were trying to do the best they could under difficult circumstances," he said. "We had a group of officers that had come from prisons, in particular Arthur Gorrie in Brisbane, who belonged to the so-called boys club. They were all about crash and bash, crash and bash, that's the only way to do it." The Immigration Minister, Chris Evans, says he is aware some staff are already seeking compensation. "I think first of all, as I understand legally the duty of care is with the employer," he said. "Certainly there may be some obligations on the department in relation to these matters, but as I understand it those are about to be tested in a court case and obviously that'll be a legal decision." OHS News Tip: Workplace Stress Safe Work Method Statements WA: Hay Baling Company Find After Employee Loses LegTuesday September 16th 2008 07:20 a.m. Source: The West The State manager of a Brookton hay baling company has been fined $3000 following an incident where a man’s lower leg was torn off while at work four years ago. Shaun Earl, the State manager of Elders Hycube, was found guilty of failing to take care and fined $3000 in the Perth Magistrate’s Court today. Elders Hycube was fined $120,000 in March over the same incident. The company had previously been fined $75,000 in 2003 over the 2002 death of a 20-year-old female employee who was caught in the moving parts of a hay baling machine at the same workplace. In October 2004, Mr Earl and another man were working late processing hay bales using a hay press. They were the only two employees at the factory. About 7pm, Mr Earl noticed that the straps around a bale of hay had broken and the hay had expanded and jammed the entrance to the cutter box of the press machine. After turning off the machine and unsuccessfully attempting to release the jammed bale, he suggested that the two men tie a rope around the bale and the cutter box ram and turn the machine on so the ram would move back and release the jammed bale. While the other worker was still near the machine, Mr Earl re-started it. The man overbalanced and his right foot became trapped in the hay press. The trapped man called out and Mr Earl hit the emergency stop button. The press shut down, but not before the man’s foot had been torn from his leg half-way between the ankle and knee. WorkSafe WA Commissioner Nina Lyhne said the case illustrated that the responsibility for keeping the workplace safe lay with both the employer and employees. “In this case, WorkSafe prosecuted both the employer – Elders Hycube – and an employee – Shaun Earl,” Ms Lyhne said. “The company pleaded guilty and Mr Earl was found guilty, demonstrating that the responsibility for safety and health in the workplace rests with many parties, including employers, employees, people in control of workplaces, manufacturers, designers and many others. “This incident is a shocking example of what can happen when safe work procedures are not in place or are not used properly. “It is also a timely reminder to any workplace that includes machinery that stringent lockout systems must be established and followed.” OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements Cth: 8,000 Annual Work Deaths Prompt Review of OH&S LawsTuesday September 16th 2008 07:10 a.m. 8000-plus Australians die each year from work-related incidents or illnesses according to Access Economics. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
QLD: Two Road Workers Seriously Injured From Industrial ExplosionMonday September 15th 2008 07:50 a.m. Source: ABC News Two road workers have been seriously injured in an explosion at an industrial site in Brisbane's inner south overnight. Queensland Fire and Rescue Inspector Paul Simmons says the men were smoking inside a shipping container at Park Road at Woolloongabba. He says flammable liquids were in the container and there was an explosion. "A couple of gentlemen have walked into a shipping container with a couple of cigarettes in their mouth and unfortunately there has been a couple of petrol cans inside the container," he said. "There has been an ignition source from the cigarettes and that caused an explosion causing some injuries to the two workers. "The fire was out by the time the fire crews arrived and the ambulance were treating the two workers on site." Mr Simmons says witnesses say it was a massive explosion and the two workers are lucky to be alive. "It just goes to show you how lucky they are, everything was in its perfect mix and they needed an ignition source and the cigarettes provided it and that's unfortunate," he said. "They have got serious injuries, now if you have got anything that is flammable certainly don't have an ignition source like a cigarette in your mouth when your dealing with this type of substance." Police and Workplace Health and Safety officers are investigating the incident. OHS News Tip: Industrial Safe Work Method Statements Cth: Lack Of Training Blamed For Rise In Work DeathsMonday September 15th 2008 07:45 a.m. Unions claim that untrained workers being pushed into supervisory roles before they are properly trained has contributed to a rise in workplace deaths. There were 27 workplace deaths in WA in the past financial year, twice as many deaths as in 2005-06. Three people were killed on WA mine sites in the past six weeks. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
VIC: Safe Workplace Reforms For StockyardsMonday September 15th 2008 07:41 a.m. Saleyards are not the safest places to work in or visit. People have died, while others have been injured. The Livestock Saleyards Association of Australia has introduced safety procedures for people attending a saleyard, such as agents, transporters and vendors. The safety program includes training regarding the reporting of all incidents and faulty equipment such as gates and rails. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
Cth: Risk Of Injury For Nurses, Firefighters For Lifting ObeseMonday September 15th 2008 07:36 a.m. Nurses, firefighters, paramedics and funeral workers are risking sustaining physical injury by lifting fatter people. More than 7 million people in Australia are now considered obese. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
Cth: Mats To Combat Workers' FatigueMonday September 15th 2008 07:30 a.m. The average retail employee and factory worker spends over 35 hours a week standing on his or her feet on nothing more than a concrete slab with a covering of carpet. OHS News Tip: Fatigue Management Safe Work Method Statements
NSW: Live Wire Workplace AccidentMonday September 15th 2008 07:21 a.m. Source: The Sydney Morning Herald It was news no young wife should hear: her 28-year-old husband, father to their two young children, had been killed at work. On October 24, 2004, Glen Viegas died after cutting through a live wire at a Central Coast Westfield shopping centre. He had been told the wire had been disconnected at the power board. Four years later, his case is still before a civil court. His wife, Andreia, and two young children, Corey, now 10, and Makayla, nearly 5, still struggle with the loss and lack of answers. On Wednesday Mrs Viegas told her story to a three-person panel established by the Federal Government to review occupational health and safety (OH&S) laws. There are nine OH&S systems in Australia. The review's first report will be handed to Workplace Minister Julia Gillard next month. To date, 242 individuals, unions, families and businesses have made submissions. Unions support harmonisation of rules and employers have been lobbying federal and state governments for years to adopt a single national system. Everyone agrees: too much red tape and confusion continue to claim an unacceptable number of lives a year. A staggering 8000-plus Australians die each year from work-related incidents or illnesses, Access Economics says. Another 690,000 are injured or fall sick from work-related causes. ACTU president Sharan Burrow said Australia's record was poor compared with that of other countries. Ms Burrow said: "We need tougher penalties for employers who cause death and injury, and we need to ensure that employers have a duty of care and don't escape prosecution. "It is too easy for companies to escape prosecution by becoming insolvent and then setting up phoenix companies." In 2006 in NSW, there were 89 unpaid fines for serious workplace safety breaches totalling almost $5million. Mrs Viegas was shattered when a coronial inquest found that her husband had been "in the wrong place at the wrong time". A WorkCover prosecution of the contractor that employed Mr Viegas resulted in a low $65,000 fine. For the past two years Mrs Viegas has been waging a civil case against the contractor. But crucial documents have gone missing. "It's been really hard for the three of us to make some sense out of it all, and try and live our lives," she said. "We are stuck in this grief, there's been no closure. For four years I've been fighting a battle, and I don't know if I'll get any justice." Kate Murphy, 49, knows too well the grief that an unsolved building death can cause. Her brother Gerry, 55, father of five and grandfather of four, fell to his death at a building site in Lawson, in the Blue Mountains, on January 4 this year. His body was found by his 21-year-old son Tony 19 hours after his death. "It appears he was trying to fix the safety mesh," Ms Murphy said. Again, confusion surrounds the cause of, and responsibility for, his death. Ms Murphy wants the Government review to result in the selection of the best worker protection laws forged into uniform national legislation. "There is too much diversity about what rules are on what state books, and how they are enforced," she said. OHS News Tip: Working Around Electricity Work Method Statements NSW: Safety Reform BeginsFriday September 12th 2008 07:24 a.m. Source: Mining Australia Major steps in the consistency of workplace health and safety laws in the NSW mining industry have come into effect. From 1 September 2008 workplace health and safety laws applying to the NSW mining industry are the same as those applying to all other industries in the State. Permanent and contractor workers in the NSW mining industry will now enjoy the same basic safety protections as workers in all other industries. According to the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (DPI), it also means that contractors will be able to move between industries knowing that the same basic legal requirements apply. Under the reforms, the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation 2001 applies to the State’s mining industry in full from 1 September 2008. This regulation covers a broad range of nationally agreed standards on manual handling and noise, dangerous goods and hazardous substances and various classes of high-risk work. According to the DPI, additional reforms will be made to ensure the safety standards applying in the State’s metalliferous and extractive industries are second to none, with the commencement of the Mine Health and Safety Act 2004 and the Mine Health and Safety Regulation 2007. This legislation adds to the protection provided under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 by setting out supplementary safety measures needed to protect the State’s mining workers, according to a DPI statement. The DPI and WorkCover NSW have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to ensure safety laws are administered in a consistent manner. Under the MOU, WorkCover NSW will deliver a range of administrative services to the mining industry while NSW DPI will retain responsible for ensuring compliance with the laws. OHS News Tip: Workplace Health and Safety Work Method Statements SA: Mine Shut After Worker DiesThursday September 11th 2008 11:53 a.m. Source: News.com.au OZ Minerals has temporarily shut down its Prominent Hill site in South Australia after an employee of a contracting firm engaged by the company was killed. The worker died in a single light vehicle accident about 35 kilometres from the Prominent Hill gold and copper mine site. OHS News Tip: Vehicle Accident Work Method Statement WA: Mining Companies Face CourtThursday September 11th 2008 11:40 a.m. Source: The West Eight companies being prosecuted by WorkSafe in relation to the deaths of two people at a Pilbara camp destroyed by cyclone George appeared in court this morning. Kitchen hand Debra Till, 47, and Craig Allen Raabe, 42, were killed and 28 people injured after winds of up to 275kmh destroyed the camp in March last year. Lawyers for Fortescue Metals, Spotless P & F, Spotless Services Australia, The Pilbara Infrastructure, BGC Contracting, Laing O’Rourke (BMC), Spunbrood and WorleyParsons Services made brief appearances in Perth Magistrates Court today on 49 charges relating to safety breaches at the camp. A representative of BGC Contracting said the company would plead not guilty to four charges under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Representatives for the other companies asked the court for an adjournment to consider the extensive documents relating to the matter. The charges vary for each company but generally relate to failing to provide and maintain a safe working environment, failing to maintain accommodation and failing to ensure temporary structures were able to withstand potential cyclones. The companies’ next court date will be in December. A spokeswoman for WorkSafe said they would not comment while court proceedings were continuing. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements SA: Education Department to stand trial on safety charges after students hurt by machines.Wednesday September 10th 2008 07:56 a.m. The Department of Education has been committed to stand trial on five workplace health and safety charges after a contested committal hearing that began on 2 September. The charges: Section 23(1) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (x5) Section 23. Duties of employers to other persons (1) An employer must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons other than employees of the employer are not exposed to risks to their health or safety arising from the conduct of the undertaking of the employer. The current maximum fine exceeds $1m per charge. OHS News Tip: Heavy Machinery Safe Work Method Statements QLD: Rail Drivers Run RisksTuesday September 9th 2008 07:25 a.m. Source: Courier Mail Commuters are being put at risk by train drivers who run red lights while chatting with colleagues, making coffee and even falling asleep at the controls. A litany of embarrassing bungles, including a supervisor who ignored a trainee driver while restocking a fridge, was responsible for a huge 46 per cent spike in the number of incidents last financial year where Queensland Rail drivers missed red signals. Drivers also blamed distractions such as looming dinner breaks, doing paperwork while they were supposed to be watching trainees and in one case a failed dashboard light that left a driver unable to read a speedometer. Six of QR's pool of drivers are currently banned for up to 19 months because of so-called Signals Passed at Danger incidents. Another 10 have been dumped permanently in the past five years. The cases were detailed in reports handed to The Courier-Mail after Transport Minister John Mickel overruled a Freedom of Information decision blocking their release. The revelations were the latest blow for QR after last week's Riverfire affair, which cost taxpayers $25,000 when executives were forced to cancel a plush dinner function. Mr Mickel yesterday admitted he was alarmed about some of the drivers' behaviour. "Even one incident where a train passes a signal without stopping is serious," he said. "QR is working on measures to reduce the number and seriousness of incidents." The most recent fatal Signals Passed at Danger case was the Trinder Park disaster in Brisbane in 1985 but there have been several non-fatal crashes since. Some cases echoed the 2004 Bundaberg Tilt Train derailment, which was blamed partly on a co-driver making coffee instead of controlling his train. The FOI documents detailed one alarming red light breach on January 15 last year in which a passenger train driver travelling on the busy Ipswich line overshot the signal at Oxley by 50m. "Yeah, mate, I done it. I, um, took me eyes off it and went past it," the driver told the Queensland Rail control room after finally stopping. "I'm fine. I'm just (expletive) off how . . . simple and how useless I was going past it." QR said it had renewed its focus on safety since the spike in Signals Passed at Danger. It had several "levels of protection" to cut the number of SPADs but admitted there were still more than 109 passenger and freight breaches last year, up from 73 previously. Rail, Tram and Bus Union state secretary Owen Doogan accused QR of intimidating workplace health and safety officers while outsourcing safety to a US consultancy firm. "QR is painting a picture of safety when it is reducing levels by corporatising the issue and taking it from the workplace to a consultancy firm," Mr Doogan said. Opposition transport spokeswoman Fiona Simpson said the Minister's claims of a focus on safety were undermined by such incidents and that QR's Riverfire "fireworks fiasco" showed it was concentrating more on lavish corporate hospitality than safety. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements WA: Vehicle Collision DeathMonday September 8th 2008 07:15 a.m. Police and WA safety inspectors are investigating a second fatal accident in two weeks at a BHP mine. OHS News Tip: Drivers Manual - Light and Heavy Vehicles
VIC: Get The Message Or Take The ConsequencesFriday September 5th 2008 07:36 a.m. Source: WorkSafe WorkSafe has issued a plea for employers and workers to take a more active approach to workplace safety. “Being in denial of the dangers is a risky strategy, yet WorkSafe’s investigators and inspectors are frequently told ‘we’ve always done it this way and never had any problems’. “What this really means is that you’ve been lucky. Acknowledging your responsibilities and acting on them means employees, yourself and the business have the highest practicable level of protection,” Mr Merritt said. He said that while Victoria’s health and safety law do not require employers to ensure accidents never happen, they do require them to take practicable steps to provide and maintain a safe working environment. They also need to consider the possibility that people will make mistakes or do something unexpected. Employees also have obligations not to put themselves or others at risk. Mr Merritt said most safety issues could be dealt with at little or no cost. He said WorkSafe’s recent prosecution of a company director and his construction business should send a clear message about obligations to ensure high safety standards were maintained.
The charges: OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements ACT: Parliament Takes Over SafeWork BillFriday September 5th 2008 07:24 a.m. Source: ABC News Legislation setting up a national body to oversee occupational health and safety and workers compensation has been introduced to federal Parliament. Safework Australia will develop legislation to be adopted uniformly in all states and territories. The body will have an independent chairman and representatives from the Commonwealth, the states, employers and unions. Workplace Relations Minister Julia Gillard says it is an important step. "This bill ushers in a new era of cooperation and collaboration between the Commonwealth and the states and territories in this important area of work," she said. "A collaboration which will improve the health and safety of workers across Australia and reduce the complexity of regulation for businesses." OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements Cth: New Alarm System To Prevent Forklift InjuryThursday September 4th 2008 07:29 a.m. Each year there are approximately 600 accidents resulting in injury from forklifts in Australia. OHS News Tip: Forklift Safe Work Method Statements
VIC: Overworked Paramedics Are FatiguedThursday September 4th 2008 07:18 a.m. The Victorian ambulance union has released an internet advertisement on the dangers of paramedic fatigue. OHS News Tip: Fatigue Management Safe Work Method Statements
VIC: Food Company Fined For Inadequate Machinery GuardsWednesday September 3rd 2008 07:29 a.m. A major food company has been fined $75,000 after pleading guilty to workplace health and safety breaches at its Ballarat plant. OHS News Tip: Food and Kitchen Safe Work Method Statement WA: Manager To Be Blamed For Incorrect Safety ProceduresWednesday September 3rd 2008 07:18 a.m. Source: The West An agricultural company State manager allegedly caused father of two Gary Baldwin to lose his right lower leg by not ensuring he was clear of a hay compressor before it started. OHS News Tip: Compressor Safe Work Method Statements Cth: The Track: High Risk Workplace For JockeysTuesday September 2nd 2008 07:20 a.m. The Australian Jockeys Association (AJA) is launching a national campaign to provide better protection for Australia's 860 jockeys. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
VIC: Linesman Suffers Electrical AccidentTuesday September 2nd 2008 07:10 a.m. WorkSafe Victoria is investigating an incident where an electrical linesman suffered a serious accident in Melbourne. OHS News Tip: Working Around Electricity Safe Work Method Statements
CTH: Increase In Workplace ViolenceTuesday September 2nd 2008 07:10 a.m. Work can at times be a violent and dangerous place. Yet, unlike America, where violence is the second-leading cause of death at work (after highway fatalities), workplace violence rarely claims lives in Australia. A report issued by the Australian Institute of Criminology revealed three cases of workplace homicide during 2005-06. They included two cases where victims were "killed by a colleague or co-worker" and one where a real estate agent was lured by the offender to a vacant house and killed there. Psychiatric hospital staff are among those worst-affected by workplace violence. In 2002, WorkCover NSW prosecuted a health service relating to an incident where nurses at a psychiatric hospital were attacked by a patient who had smashed a mirror and used its shards as a weapon. The ward in which the assault took place had a window, a mirror, and a picture frame, all containing breakable glass. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
VIC: Shift Workers are Driving Themselves to Car CrashesMonday September 1st 2008 07:20 a.m Source: Canberra Times Sleep-deprived shift workers are driving themselves to car crashes, trauma surgeons and early graves. While only 14 per cent of Australians are regular shift workers, they make up half the road trauma patients treated at the Alfred hospital. A study of 40 seriously injured Victorian drivers - which excluded those with blood-alcohol readings over 0.05 or with psychiatric conditions - found 48 per cent were regular shift workers, with a third finishing a shift immediately before their crash. The head of the Alfred's sleep laboratory, Associate Professor Matthew Naughton, said the results showed that employers needed to look after shift workers better, with 10-hour breaks between shifts, taxis home from work and limited weekly rosters. "We estimate that sleepiness contributes to about a third of single-vehicle fatal motor vehicle collisions," he said. "About half the eligible sample were shift workers. They were profoundly sleepier than the non-shift workers at the time of the accident, based on detailed questions." Associate Prof Naughton believed tired drivers might account for an even larger number of the most serious crashes, but because the most seriously injured patients could not take part due to the extent of their injuries they could not be included. Writing in the Internal Medical Journal, Associate Prof Naughton said the disturbance in the circadian rhythm of shift workers was compounded by them sleeping two to four hours less than the rest of the population. He said going long periods without sleep was the same as driving drunk, while young people driving between midnight and 7am faced similar dangers. "If you are sleep-deprived for 24 hours that is the equivalent to a blood-alcohol level of about 0.1," Associate Prof Naughton said. "If you are sleep-deprived and inebriated, it is a multiple effect." OHS News Tip: Fatigue Management Safe Work Method Statements ACT: Employers Right to Fight SafetyMonday September 1st 2008 07:10 a.m Source: Canberra Times New laws to allow unions and employer groups the right to launch criminal action on work safety issues were the last major piece of legislation for the sixth Legislative Assembly. The controversial laws were passed despite opposition from the Liberals, Canberra Party and Greens MLAs. Opposition MLA Bill Stefaniak said the complex laws needed ''a professional body like the DPP to do your prosecutions, not employers or unions who might have unreasonable grudges against each other''. Workplace law expert John Wilson criticised the move earlier in the week to allow third-party criminal prosecutions. He said even with the Department of Public Prosecutions retaining overarching responsibility, criminal prosecutions would be left in the hands of prosecution authorities. But Industrial Relations Minister Andrew Barr said the legislation provided a range of improvements to worker safety. The laws would allow workers to refuse work where they believed there was a health and safety risk. ''The new law will help give the ACT's workers peace of mind that when they leave for work in the morning, they will return safely home at the end of their day,'' Mr Barr said. He said the new powers would extend safety rights to volunteers, independent contractors and trainees a move criticised by the Canberra Party's Richard Mulcahy. Master Builders Association deputy executive director Jerry Howard said there was not enough time given for the industry to assess the benefits of the laws. Greens MLA Deb Foskey agreed, and said the Government had not given the Assembly enough time to examine the details. The Government had treated the Assembly with contempt by only issuing the final Bill a week before it was passed. ''I have no doubt that were this not a minority Government, it would have ensured that Bill was available to us sooner,'' she said. OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements WA: Alcan Admits To Workers DeathFriday August 28th 2008 07:35 a.m Source: WA Today A worker at an Alcan refinery was "catapulted" to his death on the same day his baby girl "laughed for the first time", a Darwin court has heard. Spray painter Daniel Aaron Burman, 33, was hurled 10 metres from an elevated platform on April 23 last year, after the machinery supporting him became unstable. A second man was injured in the fall at the Gove alumina refinery in north-east Arnhem Land. Alcan has pleaded guilty to two charges under the Mines Management Act - failing to conduct regular maintenance and failing to ensure machinery was operated by a qualified worker - and faces a maximum fine of more than $1 million. At the time of the accident, the company was owned by Canadian aluminium giant Alcan, which admitted on Thursday that Mr Burman and his co-workers did not have proper training. The Alcan group has since been taken over by Rio Tinto. Alcan also conceded the machine Mr Burman fell from, an 800AJ Boom Lift, was not adequately maintained, with a safety check the day before the tragedy called off because of windy conditions. "These failures were a cause of the accident which resulted in the death of Daniel Burman," prosecutor Tom Anderson told Darwin Magistrate's Court on Thursday. "(The boom lift) hit the ground ... the impact had a catapult effect. "Burman fell out of his harness because he was not wearing it properly. He fell 10 metres to the ground and died almost instantly." In a victim impact statement tendered to the court, Mr Burman's partner Sheree Leanne Russell said their 12-week-old daughter "laughed for the first time" earlier that day. "I tried to call Daniel so that he could hear her, but his phone went straight to message bank," she said. "I did not think anything of it, as I knew that he was working on fuel tanks, so his phone would probably be switched off." Ms Russell said she went into shock when she found out about the accident. "Daniel and I were trying for another baby ... We talked about getting married, travelling around Australia and buying our own place," she said. OHS News Tip: Elevated Work Platform Work Method Statements VIC: Safety Of Bar-Staff At Risk From Glass AttacksFriday August 28th 2008 07:21 a.m. A national increase in glassings in licensed venues has put pressure on nightclubs to replace glass with plastic.
OHS News Tip: Workplace Safe Work Method Statements
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