A superior court has highlighted the necessity, under safety laws, to match high level engineering controls with "robust" training and active supervision, in finding an employer's $20,000 safety fine was manifestly inadequate, and ordering that it be resentenced.
In this major must-read report, OHS Alert examines all the key workplace health and safety and workers' compensation developments from the second quarter of 2023, including a wide range of actual and proposed WHS amendments, a string of high-profile safety prosecutions, and concerns around surging burnout rates.
A court has affirmed that lump sum death benefits must be paid to the wife of a killed worker, rejecting the employer's claim the couple had been separated for two years and she was no longer dependent on his income.
A major employer that failed to ensure a quarry road and a windrow complied with industry guidance has been fined $130,000, after a loaded haul truck breached the windrow and plunged 15 metres, killing the driver.