There are fire hazards in every workplace. Fire hazards are more prevalent when flammable chemicals or combustible materials are being used, but even in offices and other lower-risk environments, there is the risk of fire. You must be aware of the fire hazards in your workplace and take all reasonable steps to eliminate or reduce the risk of a fire or explosion. In this article, we discuss six common workplace fire hazards and some steps you can take to control them. We look at your health and safety duty for fire safety and best practices, including developing emergency evacuation plans. 6 Fi ..read more

There’s good news for businesses looking for a return on safety training investment. Recent international research shows an increase of 10% in safety training activities, leads to a reduction of up to 15% in safety incidents when there are dedicated safety training programs in place.  It’s more pronounced in smaller firms that traditionally have a higher level of safety incidents than larger companies.  Smaller firms often lack dedicated safety resources, however investing in training can help to mitigate workplace injuries and fatalities. Low safety incident numbers are good for bus ..read more

Managing your organisation’s people to ensure that they exhibit safe behaviour is often challenging and influenced by several factors. As others have stated, the problem is we’re working with people! All joking aside, it’s not only human factors that influence behaviour, it’s also the working environment, culture, climate, education, skills, expectations, resources, etc. This article discusses the historical viewpoints of human factors and behavioural safety management. We briefly summarise the journey that safety has taken over almost a century, and discuss safety attitudes, organisational ma ..read more

Overnight truck driving can be a hazardous occupation and driver safety is under threat. In Australia, an estimated 40% of all crashes occur at night, even though only 25% of driving is done after dark. Overnight drivers tend to be more fatigued and distracted than daytime drivers. They also deal with hazards like low visibility, black ice, and wild animals. Still, overnight trucking is a fact of life – especially in Australia, where trucks are relied on to get supplies to remote, rural locations. Today, successful trucking companies are deploying AI tools and training strategies to support dr ..read more

During the course of their daily activities, workers in heavy industries such as mining and construction may be exposed to asbestos hazards. September 26 is Mesothelioma Awareness Day and it provides an opportunity to talk about the dangers and how it impacts these industries to create long-term health impacts. Both populations are at risk of developing asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma because of their potential high exposure. While the use of asbestos has been banned since 2003 in Australia, it can still be found in existing structures, machinery, products, and is always a hazard in ..read more

An in-depth study, into safety culture and the ACT construction industry reveals some very interesting results about WHS training that encapsulates anecdotal evidence from those working closely with the sector, as well as building on previous research. The study findings can be used to provide parallel areas of concern across other high risk sectors. The study placed a significant focus on safety culture and climate, investigating organisational commitment, leadership, safety behaviour, engagement, reporting, learning and resources. The report is detailed and extensive and ..read more

The key findings of a study conducted by Safe Work Australia (March, 2016) on Sedentary Work and the impact on workers’ long term health show that our prolonged sitting is not good for us at all! Common sedentary behaviours include sitting working on a computer, driving a vehicle and operating equipment with one half of workers reporting sitting often or all of the time at work. Sedentary behaviour is common in Australia and is linked with an increased risk of premature mortality, chronic health disorders and detrimental work outcomes. The Results Based on self-report ..read more

Tap into Safety Raises $750k to Execute 2018 Growth Plans WA based startup Tap into Safety has announced a capital investment of $750,000 from new investor Dorado Capital to accelerate its growth plans nationally and beyond. Several news agencies have published the announcement including Start Up Daily, MergerMarket and Smart Company. Tap into Safety launched in June 2014 and in just over three years is providing safety and early intervention mental health training and assessment via interactive software solutions. “We are really excited about working with Tim Moore and Tony Packer who ha ..read more

With all the safety systems, training and compliance, why are workplace injuries costing more in time to recover and more in compensation costs? Good question! SafeWork Australia recently released a report on Australian Workers Compensation Statistics that examines serious injury and illness claims between 2000 and 2015.  The key findings are shown in the image for this article and highlight that over the past fifteen years that the median lost time for a serious claim has risen by 33% and the cost to rehabilitate an injured or ill worker has increased by 30%. Labourers (25% of all c ..read more

The key findings of a study conducted by Safe Work Australia (March, 2016) on Sedentary Work and the impact on workers’ long term health show that our prolonged sitting is not good for us at all! Common sedentary behaviours include sitting working on a computer, driving a vehicle and operating equipment with one half of workers reporting sitting often or all of the time at work. Sedentary behaviour is common in Australia and is linked with an increased risk of premature mortality, chronic health disorders and detrimental work outcomes. The Results Based on self-report ..read more