Browsing: Jurisdiction (TAS) | Page 5

A chief justice has refused to increase the fine handed to one of two related companies charged with nearly identical workplace safety breaches, describing the mitigating circumstances as "powerful".

An employer unlawfully "took matters into its own hands" and deducted alleged overpayments from an employee's workers' compensation entitlements, after discovering he was operating a side business, a tribunal has found.

A worker who was on "availability duty" when he tripped and broke his leg, while walking his dog, was "doing what he was paid to do when he was injured", a full supreme court has ruled, noting previous judgments - both for and against the worker - unnecessarily applied the High Court test for interval injuries.

• Two unique WHS Codes of Practice adopted in Qld;
  
• Amended direct-employment rule in Qld safety Bill passes; and
  
• Electricity safety laws pass in Tas, PCBUs reminded of WHS Codes.

In this Q&A with OHS Alert, the managing director of Australia's "first workplace ombudsman service" examines the unique WHS risks faced by parliamentary workers and what can be done to mitigate them, providing food for thought for all organisations.

• Chemicals alert issued with GHS transition period expiring;
  
• New WHS dust regulations further amended in ACT;
  
• Controversial ACT COVID notice followed by WHS amendment; and
  
• RTW guide highlights "the most important relationship".

• Workers resorting to alcohol in time of widespread stress;
  
• WHS projects tackle language barriers and burnout in NSW; and
  
• New WHS prosecutor appointed in Qld.

• Director barred for safety breaches, consignor targeted;
  
• Compliance Codes for silica made and revoked in Vic;
  
• Workers' comp changes introduced in Tas;
  
• Healthy workplaces service launched in SA; and
  
• Cheong gets permanent WHS director role in NT.

In this major report, OHS Alert examines all the must-know WHS and workers' comp developments from the third quarter of 2022, including the introduction of laws and codes tackling psychosocial hazards, wholesale changes to workplace COVID-19 rules, and the launch of safety prosecutions linked to dozens of COVID deaths.

• WHS investigation into school tragedy ongoing;
  
• Workers' comp fraudster gets home detention and $209k bill; and
  
• Icare announces new agents and approach to psych claims.