Browsing: Fatigue | Page 23

A Fair Work Commission full bench has upheld the rejection of an enterprise agreement providing for split shifts, while a union has announced a national day of action against such shift arrangements, claiming they cause fatigue and high injury rates.

• Inquiry targets in-vehicle fatigue-prevention technologies;
  
• First marine safety convictions made under National Law in NSW; and
  
• Regulators issue asbestos, forklift and earthquake alerts.

A worker who was seriously injured in a post-shift car accident has been denied workers' compensation, with a tribunal rejecting his claim that his work schedule caused him to become fatigued and fall asleep at the wheel.

A union has successfully opposed an aviation employer's proposed enterprise agreement, and applied to the Fair Work Commission to terminate its current EA, claiming it provides for unlawful split shifts that increase fatigue and injury rates.

Ninety per cent of shift workers are at high risk of accidents because they are regularly sleepy or fatigued during work, highlighting the need for smarter rosters and medical practitioners to do more to improve patients' sleep, according to a sleep and respiratory physician.

Queensland employers and their OHS managers will need to get their heads around even more new safety legislation, with chain of responsibility and FIFO Bills passing Parliament last night.

Queensland has introduced a 67-page WHS Amendment Bill creating a manslaughter offence with $10 million fines and 20-year jail terms, mandating safety measures in Codes of Practice and reintroducing the role of workplace health and safety officer (WHSO).

A targeted assessment program has found that employers in the mining sector are breaching their own fatigue management plans by allowing supervisors to work excessive hours, and failing to implement control measures consistently across sites.

Taking a short break every half hour can rapidly improve a sedentary worker's fatigue level and mood, which motivates them to retain behaviours that counter excessive sitting, US researchers have found.

Poor sleep behaviour is often a personal choice and workplace policies should focus on educating workers on sleep hygiene, as well as the short and long-term consequences inadequate sleep can have on them, according to a new report.