Welcome to this edition of Safety (E)ssentials
In this edition we look at:
Nationally consistent OHS laws
We summarise the current progress towards nationalising the 9 Australian jurisdictions health and safety laws.
Who can you rely on? Impact on a principal's health and safety obligations when engaging skilled and competent contracts
Two recent decisions have added to the relatively thin body of judicial guidance on when a principal might rely on its contractor in discharging its own OHS duties.
Responsibility for workers
Under nationalised OHS laws a non-delegable duty of care on a “person conducting a business or undertaking” that extends beyond the traditional employer-employee relationship is imposed to cover a variety of modern working arrangements.
Inquiry into worker's compensation regime in New South Wales
After several months of foreshadowing revisions to the current ailing workers compensation regime, the New South Wales Government commenced an inquiry and invited comment on a suite of proposed changes aimed at decreasing employer premiums.
Investigate the bullies or be investigated - Bullying and harassment are serious safety issues which require proper independent investigation
From 2008 onwards, WorkSafe ACT received complaints of bullying and harassment from seven current and former employees from three centres of the Canberra Institute of Technology.
National review of workplace bullying
The Federal Government has commissioned the House of Representatives’ Standing Committee on Education and Employment to conduct a national review into workplace bullying.
New Maritime Safety Laws
The Federal Government has introduced legislation into parliament to harmonise national maritime safety laws. If passed the legislation will reduce the number of regulatory authorities dealing with maritime safety and consolidate the array of maritime safety legislation.