Employers that exposed workers to asbestos in the past could be faced with a new raft of damages claims, after French researchers found the hazardous substance causes a range of digestive cancers.
An employer that sacked a worker for exposing employees to a "potential catastrophic event" has lost its appeal against reinstating him, but a Fair Work Commission full bench has stripped him of an earlier compensation award.
A NSW employer and its director have been ordered to pay more than $110,000 in fines and costs for illegally dumping asbestos and other waste, while another employer has been ordered to pay nearly $90,000 for exposing workers in a neighbouring industrial estate to harmful fumes. In Western Australia, an employer has been fined for allowing work to be performed with unsafe tools.
Two national employers are facing category 2 safety charges, in the second and third criminal proceedings filed under the Commonwealth jurisdiction's mirror WHS Act. Meanwhile, a Western Australian company has been fined for height-safety breaches.
A world-first study on occupational exposure to diesel fumes has found that while biodiesel emissions contain fewer particulates than traditional fuel, they cause the same degree of respiratory inflammation associated with lung cancer.
The binding UK authority on personal injury claims shows that an asbestos-related cause of action accrues when the damage becomes "more than negligible", regardless of whether it is detectable at the time, the High Court of Australia has been told.
Safe Work Australia has published new research reports on WHS "mindfulness", young workers and the transport industry, as well as a guide to handling hazardous isocyanates, and a study that found media outlets - like OHS Alert - are among the most popular sources of safety information for workplaces.
The vast majority of mobile phones used at work are contaminated by bacteria, including some that can cause life-threatening infections, Australian researchers have found.
