South Australia introduces workplace child-safety laws; ACT enacts new incident reporting requirements; SWA releases premiums update and launches model Regs survey; and WorkCover NSW releases harmonisation Q&A sheets.
WorkCover NSW is calling for feedback on a set of proposals it says will deliver more cost-effective services to injured workers. Also in this article, WorkCover has announced changes to the State's workers' comp rules that take effect on 1 April.
An independent inquiry into the alleged bullying culture within WorkCover NSW has offered employers a valuable insight into how to reduce or eliminate workplace bullying and harassment.
WorkCover NSW and WorkSafe Victoria have published comprehensive draft guides outlining the differences between the proposed model Work Health and Safety Regulations and current state laws - including those pertaining to risk management.
WorkCover NSW urges height safety after more serious falls; South Australian employer fined after mobile phone fall; Queensland mines getting safer with more audits and fewer deaths; and WorkSafe Victoria hosting harmonisation sessions.
NSW employers that fail to comply with a WorkCover request for documents can now be handed on-the-spot fines, under new workers' compensation Regulations now in effect.
The number of asbestos-related deaths in NSW will soon dwarf the annual road toll, Ombudsman Bruce Barbour has warned in calling for a State-wide asbestos-eradication plan. But a medical breakthrough announced on this, the first day of Asbestos Awareness Week, offers hope for mesothelioma victims.
A new decision from the NSW Industrial Court should ring alarm bells for directors of all companies, regardless of how remote they are from day-to-day work practices. The Court, in finding that the CEO of a large multi-national company was guilty of an OHS offence, also criticised the common reliance by directors on "alternative" defences to their charges.
