If It’s in Your Risk Assessment, You Must Implement It
A recent Queensland court decision has reinforced a critical principle in work health and safety: identifying hazards and documenting control measures is not enough. Controls must be implemented, supervised, and enforced in practice. The matter arose from an incident at a worksite in Queensland involving interaction between mobile plant and pedestrian workers, a well-regarded high-risk activity. A pedestrian worker sustained serious injury when struck by operating machinery
Consultation as the fundamental failure in serious work health and safety incidents
Serious workplace incidents, worker fatalities, and life‑altering injuries rarely occur in the absence of prior warning signs. Repeatedly, investigations, coronial inquiries and court decisions show that the most common systemic failure is not the absence of written safety systems, but the failure of those systems to be informed by meaningful consultation. Consultation failures are consistently identified as a root cause of serious harm.
Chemical Hazards – The Hidden Risk Across All Industries
Chemical risks are not confined to laboratories or manufacturing plants, they exist in workplaces across every industry, from hospitality and cleaning services to healthcare, construction, and community care. Whether it’s a cleaning product, disinfectant, or industrial sealant, hazardous chemicals can cause serious injury, illness, or even fatalities if not handled, stored, or supervised correctly. Under the WHS Regulation , the business has a legal duty to provide adequat
Is vaping in the office ok?
SafeWork NSW states that environmental e-cigarette vapour, second-hand e-cigarette vapour or passive vaping should be treated ...
Labour hire workers and WHS
Labour hire involves a host organisation using workers from a labour hire agency, for a temporary period of time. The first company ....
Your Views Matter
Workers at every workplace in Australia, irrespective of the nature and risk of the business, must be consulted as far as is reasonably...
WHS Consultation needs to be able to take place at any time
The Model WHS laws, in force since 2011, describe how a business may organize its workplace into workgroups and then have representatives...
Know Your Psychosocial Hazards at Work
Company directors and business owners must talk to staff about WHS risks including psychosocial hazards in their workplace in keeping ...
“Reasonably Practicable” ... Fried Onions at Bunnings
In 2018 several media outlets ran a story about how Bunnings had changed the way its iconic sausage and bread delicacy could be...
"Yes... but can you prove it?"
Published August 17, 2017. 3 minute read In 2017, SafeWork NSW inspectors did a crackdown on WHS consultation compliance. They were...
How to Chair an Effective Health & Safety Committee Meeting
A WHS committee chairperson’s ability to be effective is dependent on their clear understanding, respect of, and adherence to the duties ...
PCBU Primary Duty of Care
Under Section 19 of the New South Wales WHS Act 2011, a Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU) has a primary duty of care to...
First WHS conviction for PCBU not consulting with other PCBUs
In May 2016 a PCBU was prosecuted and convicted for not consulting with other PCBUs – Section 46 of the WHS Act 2011. It is the duty ....