Workplace inspections conducted by OHS regulators make managers think about safety and help employers reduce their injury costs, a new Safe Work Australia study on regulatory interventions has found.
Commonwealth employers that fail to provide suitable duties to rehabilitating workers will face fines, and workers' comp payments will be reduced after 13 weeks, under a plan to "shift" the distribution of benefits that apply under the SRC Act.
Comcare outlines policy on "accidental non-compliance" in draft; A thousand workers win workers' comp exemption in NSW; SA Greens progress firefighter Bill, call for "serious" anti-bullying laws; WorkCover NSW targeting glass businesses in wake of deaths, injuries; and Q-COMP releases new medical fees.
The parliamentary inquiry into the "scourge" of workplace bullying has declined to recommend a national equivalent of Brodie's Law, instead calling for the development of a national advisory service to help employers and workers deal with the issue.
Black boxes and access to drivers' records key to better truck safety, says ALC; Unions call for compulsory crush-protection devices on quad bikes; Review of Seacare scheme to examine ways to reduce employer premiums; and Alert issued after crane-derailment fatality.
The Commonwealth SRC Act could be amended to ensure informal counselling - and other supervisory actions - aren't excluded from the definition of "administrative action" in workers' compensation disputes, according to a paper released for public comment.
Injured employees in all jurisdictions could be prevented from accruing annual leave while absent on workers' compensation, under one of the 53 recommendations made by the Fair Work Act review.
The Federal Government will consider restoring journey claims to the Commonwealth SRC Act, as part of a review, announced this morning, aimed at modernising the workers' compensation scheme.
