How Will You Be Affected By The New Workplace Safety Laws? Post 1

Happy and safe New Year. On January 1^st, 2012, the Australian Government introduced new, nationally binding, workplace health and safety laws that are aimed at bringing into harmony (hence the term Harmonisation) the gaggle of existing workplace safety laws across the different states, territories and other jurisdictions.

This may have a major impact on the way many businesses, companies, organisations, boards, directors, business owners, contractors, workers and even volunteers approach safety in the workplace.

Over the coming weeks we’ll look at how the laws apply in today’s workforce and the implications to businesses and individuals for failing to comply with this new legislation.

But why have workplace safety laws anyway?

It must be true to say that every person who goes to work at the beginning of their day deserves to go home to those who love and care for them at the end of that day in the same (or as I say often in a better) condition they went to work (oh, those hangovers!).

Notice, I don’t say employees? I don’t say management. I don’t say public. I say everyone.

And yet every year 250 to 300 people in Australia go to work and don’t make it home.

Every year 5,000 to 8,000 people die because of long term, work related health issues. For instance, mesothelioma is just one of those long term killers.

In addition tens of thousands of people suffer long term, chronic disease or injury that affects their ability to carry on working – affecting their ability to earn a reasonable income and to enjoy a reasonable lifestyle.

Roughly 600,000 injuries are reported every year in the workplace.

But it’s OK. After all, who cares about safety!?! I have even been to workplaces where the staff weren’t told that I would be conducting workplace safety training, that it was a team meeting they were required to attend; simply because no-one would come if they knew what was planned.

After all, safety – YOUR safety – in the workplace only affects you when things go wrong. Until then there is nothing to worry about is there?

It is unfortunate that we have to have laws to keep us safe at work. For surely we just need common sense to keep us safe don’t we? Tell that to the hundreds of families that lose a loved one in a workplace incident.

The laws are there, as inconvenient as they may be to everyone, to provide a framework by which all of us can go to work and come home each day.

And aren’t you important enough to care about?

Good health and keep safe out there.

Colin

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