Employers have a high degree of responsibility to prevent foreseeable risks arising from criminal conduct by third parties, a court has highlighted in awarding nearly $300,000 in damages to a worker who developed psychological injuries after an attempted robbery.
An employer has successfully appealed a verdict that it and one of its employees were guilty of recklessly causing the death of a co-worker who was killed while in the crush zone of a drill rig.
A PCBU that made a half-hearted attempt to comply with three improvement notices has been prosecuted and fined $24,000. Meanwhile, workplace safety regulations for using equipment in non-explosive atmospheres have been simplified in Queensland.
One of the first workers to seek orders under Queensland's new anti-bullying jurisdiction has lost her appeal against a finding that she was not bullied at work, and wouldn't be in the foreseeable future.
A major PCBU that discussed a non-routine task at the higher levels of the company but failed to follow through with a risk assessment, and allowed workers to adopt ad hoc processes, has been fined $200,000 over a fatality.
> Supervisor allowed workers in danger zone; > Blitzes reveal hazardous substance breaches, target tower cranes; and > Tools for electing safety reps and the liquor industry released in WA.
Three employers have been fined a total of more than $300,000 for height and access breaches, including in one case that shows a simple slip can have a devastating impact on workers and expose duty holders to prosecution.
The Federal Court has rejected a claim that unions don't need entry permits to enter sites to attend "discussions" on safety issues under the dispute resolution provisions of WHS laws.
The Federal Court has refused to restrain the operation of a new WHS rule requiring workers to undergo face to face rather than online induction training, which was introduced with the aim of improving workplace safety and cracking down on fraud.
