A commission has rejected a worker's claim that his employer discriminated against him when it sacked him for scratching a rash-prone area under his shorts, finding there was no evidence, from an employment medical assessment or otherwise, that he had a skin condition at the time.
In this major report, OHS Alert examines all the must-know work health and safety, workers' compensation and work-related COVID-19 developments from the fourth quarter of 2020, with highlights including a series of important legislative changes and near-record WHS fines.
An employer has failed in its bid to stay a WHS improvement notice, by claiming a safety inspector's limited enquires led to him relying on outdated documentation and proposing remedial measures that "were incapable of being complied with".
> COVID-19 vaccine advice for workplaces coming soon; > Two individuals and one PCBU charged over teenagers' deaths; and > Air-conditioning gas explodes in work vehicle.
A worker has been permitted to pursue a claim that her employer unfairly dismissed her by placing her on indefinite unpaid leave for declining to receive a flu vaccination, which the employer mandated for the COVID-19 pandemic.
Industrial manslaughter provisions should be amended in Queensland to ensure all companies that negligently cause a worker's death can be prosecuted, according to a major inquiry report that also makes important recommendations on safety metrics.
OHS Alert is taking a break for a few weeks, and we're leaving you with a list of our most popular articles from the last 12 months - a list dominated by our leading stories on managing the work-related risks of COVID-19, and high-profile court cases.
Employers have been urged to prepare worksites for more "wild summer weather" and prioritise electrical safety, while a resources regulator has warned that recent hot weather shows operators must ensure heat hazards are effectively managed.
An employer acted unreasonably in citing COVID-19 concerns to block a union official from entering a workplace lunchroom, given it failed to apply its COVID-safety policies consistently and the official didn't pose additional risks, the Fair Work Commission has found.
A commission has rejected a claim that workers should be paid extra for the time they spend donning and removing personal protective equipment before, after and during shifts.
