Simple Safety Update - May 2010

“Reckless Endangerment”

A 26 year old was killed when the truck he was driving overturned. The truck had a faulty braking system and a secondary brake had been disconnected. The employee was instructed to operate the truck off-road and drive up a steep slope. He had only had his truck licence for two weeks, following just eleven hours of driving instruction. The company was fined $750,000.

This should serve as a warning to all employers, that if you are aware of safety issues and do not take action to rectify them, you maybe willingly placing your employees in danger of serious injury and face criminal conviction as result.

Ensure you understand and are meeting your legal obligations to manage workplace safety – SOS can assist you with compliance and simple safety solutions.

Simple Safety Schedule

Let SOS guide you through the steps you need to manage workplace health and safety and meet legislative obligations in the Simple Safety Schedule. Steps 1-4 have focussed on setting up your OHS policy and management structure – are your employees engaged?

Step 5: Engaging your employees in OHS – Consultation & Communication

Communicate and lift the profile of workplace health & safety by:

• Having health & safety information on noticeboards and keep this up to date
• Include an article on health & safety in your staff newsletter
• Have a health & safety page on your staff intranet
• Set up a health and safety committee

Consultation is a legal requirement under the OHS Act, 2004 and the Act stipulates on what matters an employer must consult. Consultation is two-way, giving employee’s information, but also giving them the opportunity to contribute to decision making on health and safety. How consultation will work effectively will vary between different workplaces. It could be through:

• Health & safety committee
• ‘Toolbox’ talks/meetings; or
• Informally through the course of the day, although for compliance reasons, records of consultation need to be kept.

However you decide to consult, your employees must be involved in the decision making. Yes. you have to consult on how to consult!

A health & safety committee is the ideal forum for consultation to occur as it brings together employees hands-on experience and management’s business perspective. Half the members of a committee must be employee representatives.

OHS News/Events

Take a second look at the safety of your lathe

A 26 year old man was recently killed when operating a lathe. Lathes are very dangerous pieces of equipment because of the speed of the rotating parts and they should be guarded. WorkSafe have developed information on guarding of lathes guarding of lathes and are issuing improvement notices for lack of guarding.

WorkSafe are holding information sessions during May and June on the changes to the Accident Compensation Act and the important link between premium, workplace health & safety and return to work. Register now for a session near you. 

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