The national model Work Health and Safety Act, Regulations and related materials have been amended to reflect a wide range of recommendations from Marie Boland's independent review of the laws. Some states have already adopted some of the changes, while other jurisdictions are likely to follow suit soon.
Australia's WHS ministers have agreed to amend the model WHS Regulations to prescribe control measures for psychological risks, and significantly increase safety penalties, but proposed industrial manslaughter laws were voted down at their meeting yesterday.
The model WHS laws could be amended to increase the focus on psychological health, with the public consultation process for the ongoing review of the laws identifying widespread concerns over this issue and the absence of a "notification trigger" for psychological injuries.
Safe Work Australia has launched the public consultation process for the review of the model WHS laws, posing 37 questions for discussion and pointing to the reasons why industrial manslaughter provisions weren't included in the Act.
The final quarter of 2014 was a busy three months for workplace health and safety and workers' compensation, with major legislative changes and other developments in all jurisdictions. What did you miss?
New safety laws have taken effect in most jurisdictions this month, while some planned regulations have been scrapped.
Tasmania's mirror WHS Act and other laws could be strengthened to crack down on workplace bullying, according to a draft plan, which says many workers are able to bully others "without fear of consequences" under the current system.
In this update, OHS Alert examines the most important workplace safety and workers' comp news from the third quarter of 2014, including Safe Work Australia's controversial decision to dump draft Codes of Practice in favour of guidance packages, and other legislative developments.
Page 1 of 4 | Total articles: 32