March Updates
Axento Safety: Providing you with expert health and safety management solutions to enhance your business success.
Legislation update:
COAG Issues Update on Harmonised WHS Laws
The reform output of nationally uniform OHS laws is partially complete, according to a recent Council of Australian Governments (COAG) report, which observed that to date, all but two state governments have enacted model Work Health and Safety laws in some form. Read more…
Proposed changes to Queensland WHS Act
Proposed changes to the Qld WHS Act may trigger similar changes in other jurisdictions. Qld has focussed on changes to;
- The Union Right of Entry provisions including increasing the notice of intended entry to be at least 24 hours
- Doubling the penalties for breaches of Union right of Entry provisions
- Removing the power of a Health and Safety Representative to order that unsafe work cease. (I believe that this is a very backward step. It is in all organisations best interests that activities that put workers in immediate and serious danger of injury be stopped by any person so that a safer method can be implemented)
- They also propose that the model Codes of Practice that are published by Safe Work Australia, and endorsed by Queensland, can be approved, varied or revoked without the requirement of national consultation.
Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS): STAGNATION OR INNOVATION?
Jon Temby – Keynote Speaker, Central Victorian OHS Group, 18 March 2014
We rely on SWMS (and other forms of work instructions): We like to think that workers know what to do, compliance is covered and our workers as well as our directors are safe. Is what we want to believe actually correct? Probably not
The key safety messages in most
SWMS are lost, workers are overloaded with unimportant ‘stuff’ and don’t remember the important bits, Officer Due Diligence is questionable, business doesn’t prosper, innovation is stifled and workers keep getting hurt.
Jon Temby of Axento Safety explored some SWMS problems and opened the participants eyes to a solution that can lead to improved safety, coupled with greater situational awareness, accountability and innovation.
SWMS and other forms of work instructions can (and should) be an investment for your business … not a pain.
The numerous follow up contacts suggest that Jon’s message was recognised and improvements are on the cards.
A copy of Jon’s presentation is available on request until Wednesday 30th April via the contact page on www.axentosafety.com.au
Is Productivity suffering as a result of health and safety obligations? And do our systems and guidance suit the lawyers, the professionals or our workplaces???
Axento Safety’s focus is on safe, healthy AND PRODUCTIVE workplaces. The lawyers are pushing many of us for reams of time-wasting bureaucratic documents so we can tick the minutiae within regulatory compliance boxes: Axento Safety’s approach assists you to achieve safe outcomes whilst focussing on productive activity.
Building worker engagement, building awareness, productivity, accountability and encouraging innovation within flexible safe work arrangements are outcomes that you can achieve with input from Axento Safety. If this refreshing and value adding approach is of interest, please contact us.
Focus on your productive activities and achieve them safely. If you would like assistance to develop processes and performance measures to drive the required safe behaviours and productivity improvement, you should talk to Jon Temby.
Innovation
If we innovate we stay competitive, innovation in health and safety management should occur. Innovation across all business functions is important. Jon Temby can help you develop strategies to enhance employee innovation using a health and safety context to drive the process.
Axento Safety can offer your organisation and its executive team a combination of perspectives from health and safety (CFSIA), Management (AFAIM) and Director (MAICD) skills and experience.
Recent unofficial Safe Work Australia comments on current activities
Victoria is currently reviewing its OHS Regulations – it is cherry picking from the Model Regulations,
Qld is trying to change some bits of their regs (see details above).
SWA’s unofficial fear is that the current federal and state governments will move away from harmonised legislation.
SWA is doing an ‘implementation review’ of the harmonised legislation.
SWA are also interested to look at parts of the Acts and Regs that create unnecessary burdens.
SWA see ASHPA (a new national umbrella organisation that Jon Temby is a charter member of) as having a real role in assisting them – they see ASHPA as the professionally based independent health and safety experts as opposed to the tripartite bodies who have vested interests. We can be seen as the ‘trusted sources’ of information
SWA are also questioning whether their systems and guidance suit the lawyers, the professionals or the workplaces.
The focus should always be the workplaces.
Crushing statistics
WorkCover NSW figures show that within a 12-month period, 46 people received crush injuries while working with large moving machinery or heavy vehicles.
Question: Are your Traffic Management Plans/ Exclusion Zones working effectively?
Bulletin: High pressure fluid/gas
A QLD Risk Management Bulletin was released following two recent high pressure fluid incidents in Queensland coal mines.
Question: How well do you manage high pressure fluids and isolation and Lock-Out/Tag-Out practices?
Alert: False qualifications
A QLD newspaper reported that some mining workers are operating with false qualifications, allegedly handed out by a training organisation.
Question 1: Do you check to verify that all licences and other qualifications are legitimate?
Question 2: Are the licences and qualifications provided because the attendee pays and has a heartbeat? Or do they demonstrate worthwhile skills and awareness? You need to verify your employee’s skills, dont assume that a certificate or license means that they can safely and correctly do something.