06:28 pm, Thursday 2 September, 2010

A contract miner has died in a vehicle accident in Blackwater on Tuesday.

The death of the 55-year-old civil engineer was mourned by his workmates at a Blackwater mine.

“Everyone is really sad. No one wants to go back,” a miner said yesterday.

The man was with three others inside a four-wheel drive that crashed and overturned.

He suffered fatal head injuries, internal bleeding and multiple fractures from the accident.

The three other people inside the vehicle, aged 23, 51 and 30, suffered only minor injuries and were treated at the scene.

The engineer was transported to Blackwater Hospital. Initial reports say he suffered cardiac arrest at 12.25pm.

The is believed the accident happened because the 30-year-old driver lost control of the vehicle.

All four workers were employees of a construction company, which was building dams at the mine.

The mining company decided to shut down the mine yesterday as a sign of respect.

A spokesman for the company said they are cooperating with Queensland Police, the Queensland Mines Inspectorate and industry health and safety representatives in the investigations.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

06:51 pm, Wednesday 1 September, 2010

A union official is questioning whether the death of a worker on July at the Tarcutta bypass worksite was due to a safety oversight.

A 39-year-old worker was killed on July 1 at the southern NSW construction site after being pinned between his fuel tanker and a reversing front-end loader.

Rick Reich of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) said the procedure is to isolate large machines when they are being worked on under a lockout system. However, the man was crushed while he was fuelling his tanker.

“When a machine is being worked on, it must be isolated and in this instance if the machine had been isolated, then there wouldn’t have been this fatality,” he said.

“I’m not able to establish with any degree of certainty whether there was any of this type of lockout system in place on this site or on any Leighton site.”

WorkCover has yet to comment on the work practices that were changed at the construction site.

Mr Rech said people should not have to wait years to be informed on what went wrong.

“It’s my view that WorkCover should be putting out a press release the moment there’s a fatality with the root cause of what their investigation has revealed and advising other parties to put some immediate steps in place to address any of these shortcomings,” he said.

“They can put out an alert quite quickly. It doesn’t have to go to wait till it goes to the coroner, it doesn’t have to wait until it goes to court.

“That’s not to say that they are guilty, because the matter is still under investigation.”

A spokeswoman for the company involved cannot give any comment due to legal reasons.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

06:28 pm, Wednesday 1 September, 2010

Adelaide’s desalination plant is under scrutiny following three deaths linked to the site.

On July 16, a 35-year-old man was killed after being struck by a steel beam that fell from a crane.

Reports have recently revealed a worker who “drowned in diesel” while another who died in a vehicle accident.

On February 15, a 31-year-old man died after inhaling diesel accidentally while trying to siphon fuel at a work site associated with the plant.

Another death on 12 December 2009 – this time involving a 59-year-old truck driver – has been revealed. He was killed in a crash on Lonsdale Highway. It was classified as a road fatality, although workers at the site considered it a workplace incident because he was transporting material for the plant.

SafeWork SA investigated the fatality and ruled the death was not a workplace incident.

The $1.8 billion desalination plant project is under the spotlight with its December 2010 deadline to finish the construction closing in.

According to Water Minister Paul Caica, the project has suffered delays due to the July 16 fatality. He said the incident had caused the work pace to slow down.

SafeWork SA said the February 15 fatality occurred “outside work hours” and was not a “work related activity”.

“Following a thorough investigation, SafeWork SA determined that the fatal injury did not occur as a result of a work activity and that the employer had relevant procedures and systems in place,” A SafeWork SA statement said.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

02:41 pm, Tuesday 31 August, 2010

A Queensland accident research centre will take a closer look at the connection between heavy vehicle crashes and the culture of truck drivers.

Queensland University of Technology’s Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety will undertake a three-year study that will also look into the effect of safety regulations on driver behaviour.

PhD student Jason Edwards. a member of the research team, said a huge proportion of road fatalities in the state involve heavy vehicle crashes.

“When you look at the Queensland statistics, heavy vehicle crashes result in 20 per cent of all road fatalities and there’s been a lot of different laws that have been passed and a lot of different regulations that are going around,” he said.

“Despite everything that’s happening, even on a national level, there’s still just a really high number of fatalities.

“What we’re really wanting to know is what leads to those things. So there’s a lot of talk about fatigue being one of the biggest issues in the heavy vehicle industry but what we want to look at is what are the cultural and organisational issues that actually contribute to fatigue happening in the first place.”

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

02:01 pm, Thursday 26 August, 2010

A driver has pleaded guilty to failing to take reasonable care of others on Tuesday after running over a workmate with a 40-tonne truck.

The Ballarat Magistrates Court heard the incident took place at the Ballarat Gold Mine. The 37-year-old driver gave his 17-year-old colleague a lift back to the worksite after a break.

The court was told the teenage worker was climbing out of the vehicle when he slipped on the staircase and fell to the ground.

Prior to moving the vehicle the driver checked his mirrors, although he apparently failed to see his fallen workmate.

The truck then rolled over the teenager and he died at the scene.

The court was told the driver had only been operating the truck for three days, had little experience driving trucks. The court also heard the teenager was the driver’s first passenger.

The court heard no safety procedure on transporting employees to and from their breaks was in place.

The court is expected to hand down the sentence today.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

12:30 pm, Friday 20 August, 2010

A bus company has won its appeal in the Industrial Court, absolving it of liability over an employee’s death in Adelaide’s north.

A bus driver was killed in 2005 at Elizabeth Shopping Centre. He got out of the bus with the engine running and the handbrake off when the vehicle ran over him.

The company was convicted for failing to maintain a safe workplace.

It lodged an appeal questioning the guilty verdict, alleging a hand brake alert system was not available until after the accident.

The Industrial Court ruled in favor of the company and ordered the conviction be quashed.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

12:15 pm, Friday 20 August, 2010

The Perth Magistrates Court has fined a vehicle dealership on Tuesday after a car driven by an apprentice hit a car detailer.

The Osborne Park company was fined $30,000 and ordered to pay $1750.70 in costs for failing to provide a working environment in which its employees were not exposed to hazards.

The incident happened at the dealership in Scarborough Beach Road in 20 September 2007. The car dealer was cleaning a Mitsubishi 380 when he was struck by a Mitsubishi Pajero, pinning him between the two vehicles.

He suffered multiple pelvic leg fractures as a result.

The court was told the 17-year-old apprentice who was driving the Mitsubishi Pajero did not hold a driving licence.

Magistrate Tavener heard it was company practice to allow apprentices with only their learner’s permit to drive by themselves and unsupervised around the workplace.

WorkSafe WA alleged the company did not provide adequate assessment to the apprentice on the safe operation and movement of vehicles at the workplace.

It was also said the dealership had known two prior car accidents at the workplace involving the apprentice. No further assessment, instruction or supervision was made.

WorkSafe’s Nina Lyhne said the company did not take its obligation to provide a safe working environment seriously.

“As a result, the car detailer has received multiple injuries,” Ms Lyhne said.

“This is even more serious given that the apprentice had a history of involvement in accidents at the site, yet the company had made no attempt to intervene.

“All employers need to be aware of the need for adequate supervision and training.”

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

07:03 pm, Wednesday 11 August, 2010

A garbage truck driver has been killed when his truck overturned in Sydney’s west.

The incident occurred on Mulgoa Road, in Penrith on July 27.

According to police, the man became trapped in the cabin of the truck.

The driver, who was the sole occupant of the garbage truck, died at the scene.

It is reported the police would investigate the vehicle accident.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

04:35 pm, Tuesday 8 June, 2010

A bus company whose driver has been killed is planning to appeal its conviction in the Industrial Court.

The company, which provides transport service in the outer South Adelaide area, was found guilty to failing to maintain a safe work environment.

The Court heard the driver was plying his bus in Elizabeth when he got run over by his own vehicle in 2005.

The Court was told the driver was at the Elizabeth Shopping Centre when he got off his bus. Before doing so, he left the handbrake off and the engine running. However, the safety brake was deactivated when the door had closed.

As a result, the bus rolled and ran the driver over, eventually leading to his death.

The transport company told the Court a handbrake alert system was not available prior to the incident, although it warned its drivers to apply the handbrake before alighting from their vehicles.

It said their drivers could be dismissed from their jobs for noncompliance.

The appeal will later be ruled on by the Court.

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know

12:04 pm, Wednesday 2 June, 2010

Employees with limited English must be trained by their employers so the workers can do their work safely, WorkSafe said.

WorkSafe’s statement comes at the heels of the conviction of a Victorian potato farm to failing to ensure an employee with limited English received safety training before operating a telehandler.

The Mildura Magistrates’ Court fined the farm company $40,000, after pleading guilty to failing to provide instruction, information, training and supervision to its workers under section 21(1)&(2)(e) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004.

WorkSafe Victoria’s Acting Executive Director for Health and Safety, Stan Krpan said it is important for all employees to receive information and training to understand the risks involved in their work and enable them to do their job safely.

“If a worker has limited English, employers may need to make an extra effort to ensure the worker is clear on the risks. This may simply involve taking a little extra time or involving a translator – which may be another worker,” Mr Krpan said.

“Employers and supervisors also need to be aware that the language barrier may lead to a power imbalance in the workplace – workers with limited English may be less likely to question health and safety practices or speak up if they’re unsure.”

In 2008, an Indian national employed at the farm lost control of the telehandler while trying to turn it, hitting a truck driver in the process.

The driver suffered several injuries, including broken bones in his right foot, and lacerations to his elbow and head. He was required to be confined for a week in the hospital.

The Court was told the worker was allowed to move the telehandler to another site after watching a five-minute demonstration on how to use it.

The worker had no previous experience on using the heavy machinery. The court also heard the demonstration was provided by another employee with no formal qualifications or training to operate a telehandler, or train others how to use it.

“No attempt was made to arrange for another employee to interpret the instructions on how to operate the telehandler,” Mr Krpan said.

“His only instruction on how to use this piece of machinery, which weighed over three tonnes, was from someone who wasn’t even licensed to use it.

“This is a reminder for employers about their legal duties to ensure workers are provided with information, instruction, training or supervision which enables them to perform their work in a way that is safe and without risks to health.”

Report by Julia Alder - Do you have an OHS News Story - Let us know