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A dangerous machine's "confusing" control panel, combined with inadequate high- and low-order safety controls, contributed to the crush death of a worker that initiated a string of (ultimately unsuccessful) prosecutions, a coronial inquest has found.

Training that busts the myth that drugs and alcohol are the only notable causes of workplace impairments can be an "aha" moment for managers, and help them properly respond when they suspect a worker might be impaired, researchers say.

An employer ignored its own alternative "rehabilitative" paths to termination for alcohol and drug breaches, which, if applied, would "very likely" have prevented a worker's death, a coronial inquiry has found.

A unique study of "shift work tolerance" has identified the types of workers that are most likely to suffer from serious intolerance symptoms, highlighting the need to consider occupation type and work context when tailoring work schedules to individuals.

Australian workplace health promotion interventions are failing to target four of the five main modifiable lifestyle risk factors for chronic disease, and have a disproportionate focus on lower risk white-collar workers, a study has found.

Most Australian employers in a high-hazard industry are aware of the need to train workers on WHS issues like harassment and bullying, but many deliver this training through single, isolated sessions that are known to have little impact, a series of workshops and interviews with safety professionals has found.

The resurgence of debilitating lung diseases in a major industry has come with a shift in disease type and severity, which researchers have attributed to modern work methods. They say their findings highlight the importance of controlling respirable dust.

With 73 per cent of people reporting higher stress and anxiety levels during menopause, becoming a menopause-friendly workplace through education, flexible workplace policies and open conversation will not only support women through this normal life stage, but help the employer meet its WHS duties, according to a commercial health expert.

Menopause often causes "debilitating" symptoms in workers in one of the fastest growing employment groups, and the synonymous hot flushes and night sweats have the least impact, according to a study that also identifies the two most valuable workplace supports. Another study has identified widespread discrimination against pregnant workers.

Workers at a "big four" firm have experienced bullying normalised as performance management, and "insane pressure to churn work" - factors causing harm to many of them, an Elizabeth Broderick review of the firm has found.