Queensland will push for industrial manslaughter provisions and other safety amendments to be adopted nationally during the upcoming review of the model WHS Act, a parliamentary committee inquiry has revealed.
The dispute over union powers to enter sites to assist HSRs appears to be far from over, with a safety regulator "considering its options" in relation to the full Federal Court's Friday decision on the matter.
In an important decision under the model WHS laws, a court has found that a Queensland employer's fatality-related fine should have been nearly three times higher than the one imposed, after examining cases from other harmonised jurisdictions.
Harmonised rail safety laws will apply in every state and territory within four months, after a mirror National Law Bill passed Queensland Parliament last night.
Few employers will maintain high WHS standards if Australia continues on its path of inconsistent sentencing and prioritising encouragement over sanctions, leading health and safety lawyer Michael Tooma has warned.
The model Work Health and Safety Regulations are being amended to reduce the accepted levels of a toxic substance in fumes and workers' blood, after WHS ministers agreed to the changes.
Individuals could lose the protection against self-incrimination in the WHS Act in South Australia, with a mandatory review examining whether the unique provisions of the State's mirror Act adversely affect its operation.
The Federal Government has introduced laws extending the WHS Act to seafarers, limiting the power of provisional improvement notices, and clarifying that the Act applies to non-Commonwealth upstream duty holders.
