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Comcare recently published guidance on flood and storm preparedness after the Bureau of Meteorology recently declared a La Niña, the climate driver typically associated with wet conditions for eastern, northern and central parts of Australia over summer. The guidance includes information on work health and safety duties for employers and workers, working in floods and flood recovery, planningRead more

Safe Work Australia has developed a fact sheet on the risks of solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure at work. Raising awareness of the dangers of UVR for anyone who works outside is important, given the high rate of skin cancer in Australia. Around two in three Australians will be diagnosed with some form of skinRead more

When it comes to contractor management with multiple PCBUs, one of the most common problems is confusion about how to manage this responsibility between the PCBUs, according to an expert in the field. “There are areas where we find higher risks of exposure for labour-hire workers, but these are in areas that you may notRead more

WorkSafe Victoria recently launched a new strategy to reduce the number of mental injuries at work and improve mental health and wellbeing among the broader workforce. The mental health strategy 2021-2024 outlines WorkSafe’s plan to prevent mental injury, build capacity for mentally healthy workplaces and support injured workers. Last year, WorkSafe received 3,518 new mental injury claims.Read more

There were 120,355 serious workers’ compensation claims in 2019-2020 according to a new Safe Work Australia report, which found that 31 per cent of serious claims were for illness and diseases – and of these, mental health conditions were the most common. The Australian workers’ compensation statistics 2019-20 report found that three industries accounted for 43 perRead more

Safe Work Australia recently launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of occupational lung disease to protect workers from breathing in hazardous air. The national campaign seeks to educate persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs), such as employers or small business owners, on how to eliminate or manage the risk ofRead more

While many organisations generally have strong health programs or mental health offerings in place for their workforce, these are not always incorporated into daily operations, according to Dan Collins, founder and director of high-performance consulting firm Winners at all Levels. “This means our leaders aren’t necessarily coaching the mental frameworks that keep us well emotionally,Read more

Gig economy platforms need to be aware of the general obligations under workers’ compensation law for employers, according to Safe Work Australia. The gig economy is a growing part of Australia’s workforce with over 100 platforms currently operating in person, remotely or online within Australia. The most common platforms are transport (ride sharing) and foodRead more

OHS professionals would benefit from “reflective practice” to assist with continuous improvement as well as taking a more considered approach to improving professional development outcomes, according to an expert in the area. When most people think about learning and development at work, they think about induction and training modules or being sent to a shortRead more

Almost 80 per cent of HR and risk professionals globally believe their organisations recognise health and safety risks as a serious threat to the business, however, there are a number of impediments to actively addressing these risks, according to recent research. The top three difficulties organisations encounter when addressing health and safety risks include lackRead more