A retail company that was fined $30,000 under Section 28 of the WHS Act 1995 could have been fined even more, according to the Cairns Industrial Magistrates Court. Working at a height of four to five metres, a worker was erecting a storage rack by using a forklift to raise beams on a pallet, and [...]
The recent story about an office building in Brisbane being blamed for an outbreak of cancer related illnesses made us think about something called the Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). According to our research SBS is quite real but the reported symptoms suffered by workers are a lot less serious than those in the Brisbane story. [...]
In South Australia today a labour hire firm was fined $9,000 for failing to conduct adequate site assessments or hazard analysis. It was also charged with failing to properly assess the adequacy of its training systems and to ensure safe operating systems were in place for machine usage. The Industrial Magistrate rejected the owners plea that the accident would [...]
Broadbeach fatality costs contractor $70,000 in fines One contractor suffered fatal injuries when two large concrete beams fell onto the backhoe he was operating to demolish a concrete pedestrian footbridge. The defendant had a previous convicton under the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 which was taken into account with this breach. The WHSQ investigation [...]
Safety training is an area that employers know has to be done but usually managers don’t have the time and resources to get everyone together, some employers have various shifts that need to be covered or it just impacts operations and productivity so much that training is always a challenge. We can now offer a service that eliminates that [...]
I have been asked by loads of people what does a safety system look like and how do we know if we are doing the right thing. On previous posts I included a list of procedures that should be considered when setting up your system, now I think it is time to take it that [...]
Regardless of the industry, the geographical location or the number of employees you have, there will be some legislation that outlines your responsibilities in terms of workplace safety management. The big question is “well, what does a safety system look like?” The list below will give you a basic guide to the areas you will need [...]
Safety Awareness Training is vital to ensuring safety in your workplace. The following are what you need to get off to the right start with current and new employees alike. Each employer needs to develop a general overview of: Safety Policy Legislative Responsibilities Fitness for work Manual Handling Housekeeping Chemicals & Hazardous Substances Smoking Issue Resolution Hazard [...]
The age old question and resulting debate continues to divide organisations across the globe: Should an employee be paid an incentive for working safely??. The answer may never be known but it is a heck of a lot of fun trying to sort it out. So whilst I can’t give you a definitive answer whether an [...]
There is a new code of practice covering children who work at or attend a QLD workplace. This code of Practice is a result of recent changes to the law in relation to having children (under 18) at a place of work. Not only does it cover actual workers, it also covers children on work [...]
