May Updates
Axento Safety: Providing you with expert health and safety management solutions to enhance your business success.
Please check out www.axentosafety.com.au
I look forward to hearing from you. Jon
9th Annual Safe Work Australia Awards / Senator Eric Abetz
I was very pleased to be requested to attend the 9th annual Safe Work Australia Awards held at Old Parliament House in Canberra on 28 April. The Minister for Employment, Senator Abetz recognised the hard work, passion and positive impact all finalists have made to work health and safety. Details available from https://ministers.employment.gov.au/abetz/9th-annual-safe-work-australia-awards Senator Abetz said “I am delighted to see individuals, small businesses and large organisations finding solutions to make their workplaces safer”. Following the awards I was lucky enough to have a 1:1 discussion of about 10 mins with Senator Abetz on a range of health and safety matters including harmonisation, he said that the holdup to full harmonisation was related to ‘who has control over workplaces’ and that he was trying to resolve that – watch this space!.
We discussed the necessity for industry to have access to competent OHS advice based on the Victorian model and changing the performance measures to encourage better management of H&S and concurrently generate innovation and productivity gains. We concluded our discussion on ways to rectify the shortcomings of many H&S Cert IV and Diploma courses to enhance the provision of competent advice to industry.
He appeared genuinely interested in my perspectives and clearly wants the harmonisation process to work better.
Queensland Passes Amended OHS Laws
Queensland recently passed the Work Health and Safety and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2014 into law. Read more..
Jons Comments: Eric Abetz was not impressed by this additional white-anting of harmonisation. Among other changes, removing the right to stop seriously unsafe work will prove to be a costly step in the wrong direction.
Employees, don’t neglect OHS!
Steve Darnley of WorkSafe Victoria’s Construction Unit writes about the health and safety duties that employees have to other people… and the consequences of ignoring these responsibilities. Read more
Jons Comments: This could be used as a discussion point with your employees to reinforce our joint responsibilities for health and safety.
OHS the Biggest Red Tape Concern for CEOs
According to the AIG, OHS red tape and compliance costs are the biggest regulatory burdens for businesses and their CEOs, according to a recent research report. Read more
Jons Comments: The problem is not the regulations so much as the floods of paperwork that are produced by those who are not sure about what is essential and what can be left out or placed elsewhere in the system. There is no need to change the legislation, you need good quality advice to reduce red tape.
Your Obligations to Stop Bullying
A legal expert reveals the steps directors are obliged to take to stamp out workplace bullying in their organisations. Read full article.
Jons Comments: This advice follows basic health and safety due diligence principles and will be a useful refresher for most readers
Company Fined 70,000 Over Crush Injury
A large manufacturing company in Queensland was recently fined $70,000 after a factory worker had his hand crushed in a machinery accident.
Jons Comments: Look at what was done after the incident: have you implemented these sorts of controls in your workplaces? Hopefully you won’t take the risk that this company did
GlencoreXstrata Records 26 Fatalities
GlencoreXstrata recorded 26 fatalities in 2013 according to its most recent annual report. A disastrous situation for any organisation, let alone for the individuals, their extended families, co workers and managers involved.
Jons Comments: They have been focussing on reducing their LTIFR but clearly not focussed enough on their fatality risks – do you know what your fatality risks are and are you managing them effectively? If unsure, please contact Jon for assistance to identify as well as sensibly control them
Jons Question: Are your systems following outdated ideas or are you challenging for future success?
We should challenge the status quo in health and safety and shine a spotlight on the management of our key health and safety risks. We need to know:
- That we have adequate and current information for future-proofing our own business;
- That our safety management systems and their implementation will manage our key health and safety risks
- That we are not just blindly doing what we have always done and hoping for a better result.
Our Boards and the regulators want to know that our key risks are adequately controlled. The regulators can be expected to take action immediately if they find situations where key risks are not being adequately managed.
Jons Questions for your Board and Executive Management Team:
- Does your board know the current status of controls over your key health and safety risks?
- Have you assessed your current health and safety performance?
- Are you achieving continuous improvement?
- Are all supervisors and employees helping to implement your health and safety system and your business plan?
If you are unsure about the status of your key risk controls, or worse still, not sure what your organisations key risks are, assistance is available.
Your Due Diligence obligations can be met and your business can thrive if you are well informed. Call Jon for assistance to identify key risks, assist with the selection of controls and identify simple strategies to monitor effectiveness.
Is Productivity suffering as a result of health and safety obligations? Do our systems and guidance suit the lawyers, the professionals or the workplaces???
Axento Safety’s focus is on safe, healthy AND PRODUCTIVE workplaces. The lawyers are pushing all of us very hard for reams of documents so we can tick the minutiae of their 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 you can achieve through Axento Safety. If this refreshing and value adding approach is of interest, please contact us.