HSEQA Specialists Australia

So much for Harmonisation!...

2012-03-24T22:10:00.001-07:00

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Hi from HSEQA Specialists Australia!...

It has been some time since our last post as we are busy serving our customer base.

There appears to be further evidence that the so called 'harmonisation' of health and safety law across Australia is unlikely to occur in the near future, if at all.

As always, HSEQA Specialists Australia will keep you up to date and give you the 'good oil' on the latest in legislation, best practice developments and more.

So become a free member by clicking on the link below and allows us to scan the legislative and best practice environment for you!

Free Membership with HSEQA Specialists Australia

Commencement of New Model Work Health Safety Legislation Delayed

2011-12-03T00:25:00.000-08:00

Building You a Better Business

Discussion on New Work Health Safety Laws delayed in parliament until February 14th 2012.

Subsequently, the original commencement date of 1 January 2012 is no longer applicable.

HSEQA Specialists Australia will keep you up to date with all the latest news in legislation, best practice developments and more.

So become a free member by clicking on the link below and allows us to scan the legislative and best practice environment for you!

Free Membership with HSEQA Specialists Australia

New WHS Laws have Marginal Impact

2011-11-26T22:59:00.000-08:00

Will new WHS Laws result in reduced injuries and illness in the residential building sector?

It is important to recognise that the residential sector operates in a much different way than its civil and commercial relatives in many ways and for many reasons.

Read about it at my latest feature article in the spring edition of Australian Construction Safety Journal at: http://ebook.aprs.com.au/issue/46704

http://www.hseqa.com/

Maximum Penalties Under the WHS Act

2011-10-15T04:44:00.001-07:00

Starting 1 January 2012, the WHS Act will contain three levels of obligations placed on people within your company: PCBUs, Officers and Workers.

Breaches of the Act or its Regulations made by those persons will result in maximum penalties which are much more significant as identified below.

Maximum penalties under the WHS Act:

Type of offence	Maximum penalty for corporation	Maximum penalty for officers	Maximum penalty for workers
Category 1 – Breach of a health and safety duty involving recklessness as to the risk of death or serious injury or illness without reasonable excuse	$3,000,000	$600,000 or 5 years' imprisonment	$300,000 or 5 years' imprisonment
Category 2 – Breach of a health and safety duty which expose an individual to death or serious injury or illness (without recklessness)	$1,500,000	$300,000	$150,000
Category 3 – Other breaches of health and safety duties	$500,000	$100,000	$50,000

Need further information on how to avoid these penalties?....then contact us at www.hseqa.com

Applicable Minimum Wages for employees covered by Modern Awards

2011-10-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

From 1 January 2010, modern awards replace most existing awards and transitional pay scales, and contain the minimum terms and conditions for employees in particular industries and occupations.

While modern awards contain minimum wages, some modern awards have transitional arrangements in place, whereby the wage-related components do not come into effect until 1 July 2010, and may be phased in over five years.

If there are no transitional arrangements, the modern award pay rates apply from 1 January 2010.

An employee cannot be paid less than the base rate of pay that would be payable to them under a modern award.

For further information on modern awards, including who is covered by a modern award and the appropriate transitional arrangements, please contact us at http://www.hseqa.com/ or email us at enquiries@hseqa.com

Modern Awards

2011-10-03T01:41:00.000-07:00

As you may already know, from 1 January 2010, modern awards cover most workplaces.

Modern awards establish one set of minimum conditions for employers and employees across Australia who work in the same industries or occupations.

Modern awards, together with the National Employment Standards (NES) and the national minimum wage orders made by Fair Work Australia, make up the safety net for employees covered by the national workplace relations system.

Contact http://www.hseqa.com/ for futher information concerning your Industrial Relations Obligations.

Probationary Periods

2011-08-09T02:54:00.000-07:00

What is a Probationary Period?

It is good practice to subject all new employees, or employees taking up new positions, to an initial testing period.

Employers may discover that new recruits do not have the level of skills expected, or that they are inappropriate for the position.

Likewise, employees may find that the role in question is not one to which they are suited.

Probationary periods contractually allow employees and employers to terminate employment with shorter notice periods than if the employment continued beyond the probation period.

HSEQA Specialists Australia Promo Video

2011-08-05T02:14:00.000-07:00

HSEQA Specialists Australia Promo Video

What are Risk Assessments?

2011-08-02T03:55:00.000-07:00

Risk assessment is the process of evaluating both the likelihood that a hazardous event will happen and the severity of the associated injury if it were to happen.

A Risk Assessment could focus on:

A part of a tasks e.g removal of a wheel from a vehicle.
The whole task e.g. removing and repair and refitting of a wheel from a vehicle.
Or an overall assessment of health and safety systems in your workplace.

Risk assessments look to assess the consequences arising from an incident e.g. fatality or minor injury etc. and the probability that the incident will occur.

Want to know more about Risk Assessment?...contact us at www.hseqa.com or

Call Rick Nuske on 0488 185 557

www.hseqa.com

What Does Reasonably Practicable Actually Mean?

2011-07-26T02:42:00.000-07:00

Visit us at http://www.hseqa.com/

What does ‘reasonably practicable’ mean?

Work health and safety duties, other than duties of officers, workers and other persons at the workplace, apply so far as is ‘reasonably practicable’. ‘Reasonably practicable’ represents what can reasonably be done in the circumstances. This means that the duty holders must satisfy the duties as far as they are reasonably able to, taking into account and weighing up all relevant matters, including:

The likelihood of the relevant hazard or risk occurring.
The degree of harm that might result from the hazard or risk.
What the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, about the hazard or risk.
What the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, about the ways of eliminating or minimising the risk.
The availability and suitability of ways to eliminate or minimise the risk.

Only after assessing these matters can the cost of eliminating or minimising the risk be taken into account, including whether the cost is grossly disproportionate to the risk.

Need more information?...contact us at http://www.hseqa.com/ or

Contact Rick Nuske on 0488 185 557

Construction Safety - Is Prevention Better than Cure?

2011-07-10T00:12:00.000-07:00

To Contact us at HSEQA Specialists Australia - Follow this LINK

In 2008-09, the construction industry employed 926 400 people which represents 9% of the Australian workforce.
Within this industry, 72% of workers were classed as employees and were covered for workers’ compensation.

In 2008–09, employers in this industry paid 2.5% of payroll to cover their employees for workers’ compensation.

The most common causes of compensated injury and disease in the Construction industry in 2008–09 were:

1. muscular stress (due to manual handling or repetitive movement), which accounted for 35% of claims

2. falls, trips and slips of a person, which accounted for 26% of claims,

3. being hit by moving objects, which accounted for 16% of claims.

What can you do to avoid your workers becoming statistics?

Contact HSEQA Specialists Australia to find out how we can help you (http://www.hseqa.com/)

Work Health and Safety in 2012 - Union Right of Entry (ROE)

2011-06-25T17:25:00.000-07:00

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Re: UNION RIGHT OF ENTRY

The model Work Health and Safety (WHS) Act provides authorised union officials with a right of entry, for specific reasons, to workplaces where there are ‘relevant workers’. A ‘relevant worker’ is a worker:

Who is a member, or eligible to be a member of the union which the permit holder represents
Whose industrial interests the relevant union is entitled to represent, and
Who works at that workplace.

A work health and safety entry permit holder is not required to give prior notice when entering a workplace to enquire into a suspected contravention of the model WHS Act.

What Are Codes of Practice?

2011-06-23T04:19:00.000-07:00

Codes of Practice

A Code of Practice is a practical guide to achieve the standards of health and safety required under the model Work Health and Safety (WHS) Act and model WHS Regulations. Codes of Practice provide duty holders with guidance on effective ways to manage work health and safety risks.

Unintended Consequences for "PCBU's" or "peek-a-boo's"

2011-06-20T03:53:00.000-07:00

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Duties and obligations under the New WHS Bill are placed on the concept of ‘persons conducting a business or undertaking’ (PCBU) or as some people like to refer to as 'peek-a-boos'.

Further revision is needed to ensure the removal of unintended consequences associated with the new concept of the 'PCBU' to ensure that the scope of the Bill does not inappropriately extend beyond work health and safety matters.

Find HSEQA Specialists Australia on facebook

2011-06-18T18:13:00.000-07:00

Hi, for the latest on Work Health and Safety, Human Resources and Quality Management, follow HSEQA Specialists Australia on facebook...

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National WHS laws bring tough new duties for "officers" from 1 January 2012

2011-06-16T03:26:00.000-07:00

Directors and officers have new positive obligations to ensure businesses are complying with their obligations.

For the first time in some Australian jurisdictions, directors and officers will soon have a positive duty to ensure their businesses comply with their safety obligations under new occupational, health and safety laws.

Under the new laws, officers could be personally liable for up to $600,000 in fines and/or 5 years' imprisonment if they recklessly breach their duty and it results in, or exposes a person to serious harm.

Manage Risks with Well-Written Policies, Procedures and Forms

2011-06-13T00:35:00.000-07:00

Hseqa Specialists Australia

Manage Risks with Well-Written Policies, Procedures and Forms

Every business has an obligation to identify, assess and control its risks.

By introducing a suite of standard policies, procedures and forms, your business will have a process control mechanism that will assist your business in improving the overall effectiveness of its risk management strategy.

Visit: www.hseqa.com for your policies, procedures and forms which comply to current standards and legislative requirements.

Impacts of the new WHS Laws....Directors and Officers... 1 January 2012

2011-06-12T20:30:00.000-07:00

Directors and officers have new positive obligations to ensure businesses are complying with their obligations.

Directors and officers will soon have a positive duty to ensure their businesses comply with their safety obligations under new work health and safety laws.

Under the new laws, officers could be personally liable for up to $600,000 in fines and/or 5 years' imprisonment if they recklessly breach their duty and it results in, or exposes a person to, serious harm.

When do the changes come into effect?

The new obligations on officers will come into effect when the new safety laws come into operation around the country on 1 January 2012.

Who is an "officer" under the new laws?

The definition of officer under the new laws will replicate the definition in section 9 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) which includes:

a director or secretary of a corporation;
administrators and liquidators of a corporation;
partners in a partnership; and
officeholders in a unincorporated association.

It also includes a person:

who makes, or participates in making, decisions that affect the whole, or a substantial part, of the corporation or business;
who has the capacity to affect significantly the corporation or business;
in accordance with whose instructions or wishes the directions of the corporation or entity are accustomed to act (excluding advice given by the person in the proper performance of functions attaching to a person's professional capacity).

Why do we need to harmonise and adopt model work health and safety laws?

2011-06-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone!...

Did you know: the Commonwealth and each state and territory government have agreed to harmonise their work health and safety laws, including Regulations and Codes of Practice, so that they are similar in each jurisdiction?

Do you know how harmonisation will work in South Australia?

Each jurisdiction, including South Australia, will enact legislation to have mirror laws enacted across Australia. Want more detail?....visit us at http://www.hseqa.com/

WHS - Proposed Union Right of Entry Provisions

2011-06-11T00:29:00.000-07:00

Hi, as you know, we are steadily working towards a new set of WHS laws which will affect businesses in various ways.

Did you know: one of the proposed reforms will include union right of entry to investigate health and safety breaches. How will this affect your business, are you ready to deal with union representatives on your site?

Is your business ready for the new Work Health and Safety Law?

2011-06-08T02:51:00.000-07:00

Hi and welcome to HSEQA Specialists Australia Blog Site!....

We will be exploring the ins and outs of the proposed new legislation slated for January 2012.

Are you ready?

Dont find out by mistake that you are not!....Contact us today via our website:

http://www.hseqa.com/