This bulletin provides information about legislation that is upcoming and under review.  It also offers information on draft publications, campaigns being run by authorities and a selection of recent fines and prosecutions. 

This bulletin has been collated by Environment Essentials from selected Australian and New Zealand government and other websites. The bulletin is published every two months.  Exclusions.

Legislation - Upcoming

Commonwealth – Chemicals - Globally harmonised system planned for chemicals
Australia will implement the globally harmonised system (GHS) for chemicals by 2008. Developed by the United Nations, the GHS is a uniform way of classifying and informing users of chemical hazards. It is being implemented by many countries. The Australian Safety and Compensation Council (formerly NOHSC) is developing a national standard and codes of practice. More.

Commonwealth – Chemicals - New ADG Code to take effect from January 2008
The new Australian Dangerous Goods Code (7th Edition) is scheduled to take effect from 1 January 2008. The ADG Code applies to road and rail transport but also specifies packaging requirements. Transitional arrangements will apply until December 2008. View the fact sheet summarising the changes.

Other Australian states and territories No information.

New Zealand No information.

Legislation - Upcoming (from previous bulletins)

Previous bulletin items - Legislation - Upcoming

Legislation - Under review

Commonwealth - Chemicals - Control measures for security sensitive substances under review
Control measures for security sensitive substances are being reviewed. Public comment has closed. Further consultation will occur as the review progresses. More.

NT – Work Health, Mining Management and Petroleum Acts under review
Following the 2006 decision to transfer OHS regulatory functions to NT WorkSafe, the Work Health Act, Mining Management Act and Petroleum Act are being reviewed. View the issues paper, detailing key issues that will be examined in the review. More.

VIC - OHS regulations under review
The Victorian government is reviewing Victoria’s 13 OHS regulations, with a view to combining them into a single document. An overview of the proposed regulations is available, as are information sheets on each of the proposed chapters. Public comment has now closed. More.

Other Australian states and territories No information.

New Zealand No information.

Legislation - Under review (from previous bulletins)

Previous bulletin items - Legislation - Under review

Publications - Drafts

Australia – Chemicals - Nanomaterials in use in Australia
NICNAS has published results of its February 2006 call for information on the use of nanomaterials. The General Information Sheet summarises types of nanomaterials currently in use in Australia, their volume of introduction and uses.

Companies reported introducing approximately 21 types of organic (e.g. polymers) and inorganic (e.g. metal oxides) nanomaterials. Seventeen of the 21 nanomaterials are for commercial use, with four used for research and developmental purposes. View the general information sheet.

Australia – Chemicals - New National Standards and Codes of Practice published
A Draft National Standard and Code of Practice on Workplace Hazardous Chemicals have been released. These drafts are part of the new Workplace Hazardous Chemicals Framework and are being developed by the Australian Safety and Compensation Council (ASCC, formerly NOHSC). Public comment has now closed. View the drafts.

ACT - Draft code of practice on heat and cold published
A draft Code of Practice for working in hot and cold environments has been released.  Public comment has now closed. View the draft.

WA – Draft Code of Practice for safe design of buildings and structures published. Comments open until 23 July.
A draft code of practice on the safe design of building and structures has been published. Comment is sought. The code aims to help people involved in designing buildings or other structures to meet the OHS requirements. Comments close 23 July 2007. More.

New Zealand – Report on cost of work-related vehicle crashes published
A DoL report has been published which examines the extent and costs of work-related vehicle crashes in New Zealand, and makes a number of recommendations. The report aims to raise awareness of the importance of ensuring employees are safe when driving for work, to reduce the risks of injury and death.

The report follows a series of workshops in October 2005 for transport operators and government transport sector managers. More. View the report.

Other Australian states and territories No information.

News

Campaigns

National – Campaign priorities set for 2007 and 2008
Australian and New Zealand workplace safety authorities will be focusing on the following areas in 2007 and 2008:

• large mobile plant in civil construction
• manual handling in manufacturing
• labour hire in the food Industry
• prevention of falls in construction, including implementation of a code of practice
• manual handling and slips/trips/falls in hospitals
• guarded machinery in manufacturing. More.

National – Coordinated campaign on labour hire workers in food manufacturing
WorkSafe authorities in Australia and NZ have launched a coordinated campaign focusing on labour hire workers in the food manufacturing industry. Inspectors will visit more than 220 workplaces across Australia and NZ between March and May 2007 to give practical assistance on safety requirements specific to the food industry and to assess compliance with OHS legislation. More. View details on South Australia's campaign.

SA - Major workplace safety program underway
SafeWork is now running an extensive workplace safety program - the Industry Improvement Program. The program will require employers to implement measures to address the major causes of safety incidents, injuries and illnesses in their workplaces.  More.

SA – SafeWork targeting manual handling in manufacturing
SafeWork will be targeting manual handling in the automotive component manufacturing industry until mid 2007. More.

WA – WorkSafe targeting labour hire in meat industry
As part of the Trans-Tasman campaign on labour hire workers in the food manufacturing industry, WorkSafe WA will focus on the meat industry and associated labour hire agencies until May. More.

Further information and the guidance material can be obtained by telephoning WorkSafe WA on 08 9327 8777.

NZ – Campaign priorities set for 2007 and 2008
New Zealand and Australian workplace safety authorities will be focusing on the following areas in 2007 and 2008:

• large mobile plant in civil construction
• manual handling in manufacturing
• labour hire in the food Industry
• prevention of falls in construction, including implementation of a code of practice
• manual handling and slips/trips/falls in hospitals
• guarded machinery in manufacturing. More.

Other Australian states and territories No information.

Fines and prosecutions

QLD – Company fined after crush injury and severed fingers
A Queensland-based company was fined $35,000 after one of its workers had four fingers amputated from a crane incident in 2004.

The worker was injured while preparing to unload timber from a truck at a building site. While operating the levers of the crane control device, his body contacted the control levers, causing the boom to move, crushing his left hand between the crane boom and the metal head board of the truck tray.

Workplace Health and Safety Queensland’s investigation revealed that while the hazard of pinch points had been identified, the company failed to put in place adequate control measures, such as instruction or proper training. More.

QLD - Company fined after traumatic brain injury
A Capalaba-based company was fined $22,500 after one of its workers fell four metres from a stock picker and suffered fractures, traumatic brain injury, significant hearing loss and cognitive deficits.

Workplace Health and Safety Queensland's investigation revealed that the stock picker came with a working platform that could be attached but it was not fitted with edge protection or any other device that could prevent a fall. More.

SA - Employer fined $15,000 for hindering inspectors
An employer has been convicted and fined $15,000 for hindering SafeWork inspectors. SafeWork SA has reminded all employers and workers that they are required to cooperate with inspectors when investigating alleged safety breaches.  More.

SA - Chemical burns lead to $45,000 fine
A Regency Park business has been fined $45,000 after a storeman suffered chemical burns from sodium hypochlorite. More.

VIC – Worker charged under OH&S Act for putting others at risk
A site supervisor has been fined $5,000 and found guilty of failing to take reasonable care of the health and safety of people at the workplace.  WorkSafe found that the supervisor was aware of the poorly constructed scaffolding, eight metres from the ground. More.

VIC – Major agribusiness convicted and fined $85,000
A major agribusiness company has been convicted and fined $85,000 after an auger fell and pinned a worker at Dimboola in August 2005, causing serious injuries. This is the third prosecution of a major agribusiness company this year. WorkSafe has said the cases highlight the need for proper guarding and employee training. More.

Other Australian states and territories No information.

New Zealand No information.

Other news

Australia - COAG commits to national OHS consistency
At its April meeting, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed on a timetable to achieve national occupational health and safety (OHS) standards and to harmonise the content of the main OHS Acts, provided legitimate safety concerns in current OHS standards are not compromised.

A revised national OHS standards framework will include:

• national standards focused on safety requirements, which will form the basis for state and territory regulations
• national codes of practice that give more focused practical guidance
• guidance material
• regulatory interpretative documents
• a handbook with the principles and processes of the national standards framework.

For more details, click here and go to page 4.

NSW – Construction - Mutual recognition of OHS induction training now in place
As part of harmonisation of OHS laws, New South Wales “white cards” are now automatically recognised in Victoria and Queensland. Queensland “blue cards” and Victorian “red cards” are automatically recognised in NSW. These cards are part of each state’s construction OHS induction training scheme. More.

QLD – Construction - Mutual recognition of OHS induction training now in place
As part of harmonisation of OHS laws, Queensland “blue cards” are now automatically recognised in New South Wales and Victoria. New South Wales “white cards” and Victorian “red cards” are automatically recognised in Queensland. These cards are part of each state’s construction OHS induction training scheme.

Holders of New South Wales or Victorian demolition or asbestos removal qualifications or certificates will need to undertake additional training to do this work in Queensland. More.

QLD - Mining - Audits lead to mandatory corrective actions
Audits of coal and metalliferous mines have led to eight mandatory corrective actions and 18 recommended actions being issued by the the Mines Inspectorate. The eight mandatory corrective actions related to emergency preparedness, contractor management, plant and JSAs.

The next round of audits were due to commence at the end of April 2007. More.

VIC – Construction - Mutual recognition of OHS induction training now in place
As part of harmonisation of OHS laws, Victorian “red cards” are now automatically recognised in New South Wales and Queensland. Queensland “blue cards” and NSW “white cards” are automatically recognised in Victoria. These cards are part of each state’s construction OHS induction training scheme. More.

WA – Construction - New safety training laws being enforced
The new Construction Safety Awareness Training laws are now being enforced by WorkSafe inspectors. Between 1 January 2007 and 31 December 2007, workers must obtain a safety training induction certificate or safety awareness training certificate, issued by a registered training provider, before doing construction work. View the industry guidance document. More.

Other Australian states and territories  No information.

New Zealand  No information.

Case briefs

View case briefs published in Blake Dawson Waldron's Safety Matters.