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Government can do much better on level crossing safety
The Victorian Government is likely to say the Auditor-General’s report into “Management of Safety Risks at Level Crossings“, released on 24 March 2010, supports the government’s initiatives. This is...
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Compensation denied because police officers only saw the aftermath of fatal...
In 2003, emergency responders attended a major rail incident at Waterfall in New South Wales, in which multiple passengers were injured and seven died. According to a 14 April 2010 article in The...
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Fortescue Metals contests cyclone deaths
In December 2008 Fortescue Metals Group said it would contest charges it breached OHS laws over the death of two people. In April 2010, it is seeking to avoid the charges. On March 9 2007, tropical...
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Mining company trial set over cyclone deaths
Further to the SafetyAtWorkBlog article about the prosecution of Fortescue Metals Group, The Australian newspaper reports on 28 April 2010 that the trial will start tomorrow. The article states that...
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The contract for building safe trains is a “dud” according to CEO
The Australian business newspapers and websites are all reporting on the “dud” contract that Downer EDI has been saddled with over the construction of 78 eight-car trains for New South Wales’...
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When information supply is NOT consultation
In Australia there is a purposely created commonality between the developing OHS law and industrial relations law on certain issues. Consultation is one of those matters and, although a decision by...
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UK case exposes the hypocrisy of leadership commitment
Most safety professionals can tell stories about how workplace injuries are hidden so that bonuses or rewards are still distributed even though they are not warranted. Most of these examples are at...
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Fatigue management is getting clearer but is competing for attention
As a discipline for study, fatigue still seems to be in its early days and this presents a challenge for safety professionals and researchers. Everyone knows what fatigue is because at some time we...
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Safety leadership and culture require accountability
At the recent Safe Work Australia Awards, the Minister for Workplace Relations had a dig at “safety culture“, according to an article from the National Safety Council of Australia. Bill Shorten said...
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Reliance on PPE impedes safety progress
There is an increasing call for the mandatory wearing of high-visibility clothing for motorcycle riders around the world. The reason is to make motorcyclist more visible to car drivers and other road...
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An OHS look at the Australian Labor Party’s National Platform
The leadership squabbles in the Australian Labor Party (ALP) have diminished for the moment, and the next Federal election is set for September 2013. Most everyone is tipping the ALP to lose the...
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New Zealand railways, red tape, politics and workplace deaths
On 28 April 2013, New Zealand lawyer, Hazel Armstrong, published a 48-page book on how workplace fatalities and the management of the NZ rail industry has been related to politics and economics. This...
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Engineering handbook progresses OHS management
Many safety professionals in Australia have become so familiar with the work of James Reason that they are looking for the next big thing. There isn’t one but there are small things that build on...
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Coronial findings into level crossing fatalities released
Today the Victorian Coroner has released the findings into the 2007 Kerang rail disaster and other level crossing fatalities. SafetyAtWorkBlog has written about issues related to level crossings those...
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Safety Culture can distract from safety management
Mohammad Rabbi has recently written that “…safety culture is something that must permeate an entire organization. Its application largely depends on the investment, training, employee attitude,...
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Safety learnings from construction
The author onsite earlier this year I have recently finished some years of full-time work as a safety adviser on a range of construction projects in Australia and below is a list of some of what I have...
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Scissor Lifts and safety
digitally altered Workers in scissor lifts often step on railings or overreach placing themselves at risk of falling. These actions are contrary to the use of plant as usually recommended by...
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Is technology the solution to everything?
Today, I received a media statement by the Acting Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Mark V. Rosenker. He said that new technologies have the potential to substantially...
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Beware the OHS hype on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
World COPD day was held on 17 November 2008. COPD Stands for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. As with many of these health-related days there is more hyperbole than substance and often the most...
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Deaths in isolated work camp from tropical storm
It is relatively easy to manage a workplace in an urban environment. The buildings stay in one place, the neighbours are almost always the same and the weather bureau provides plenty of warnings. But...
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