Residual current devices (RCDs) should be installed in all workplaces, regardless of the construction date, while defibrillators need to be more widely available, particularly at remote sites, an inquest into an electrocution has found.
A series of geotechnical and risk assessments commissioned by a mine operator, before three workers were killed in a six-week period at the mine, appeared to be directly relevant to the circumstances of one of the fatalities and it would be "absurd" to prevent a coroner viewing them, an appeals court has ruled in a high-profile case.
A coronial inquest has found a worker's death could have been prevented by simple and inexpensive actions like proactively maintaining personal protective equipment, which, among other things, sends a clear message to workers on the importance of using PPE.
Workers should never under any circumstances be put in a position where they are the "first line of defence" against approaching vehicles, a coronial inquest into the death of a traffic controller has warned.
An experienced worker was killed after he and a supervisor came up with an alternative work plan that was "contrary to established principles of workplace risk management", and made the outcomes of that morning's safety meeting obsolete, a coronial inquest has found.
A coronial inquiry has found that a single moment of inattention from a highly experienced worker led to him being dragged into a machine and dying. Meanwhile, an individual has been fined after a worker was killed on a tractor with corroded rollover protection, and an employer has been fined for confined space breaches.
> VLC safety blitz pushes for national changes; > Coroner makes workplace seatbelt recommendations; > Develop safety plan and stick to it, harvesters told; and > Regulator releases reports on carcinogens, noise and concussion.
A cost-saving measure and a supervisor's complacency contributed to a worker dying in a six-metre fall, while the lack of regulatory action in such cases could be encouraging poor safety cultures, a coronial inquest has found.
In a rare and important decision, a court has increased a Heavy Vehicle National Law fine four-fold after examining the severity of the safety breach and the legislative purpose of the scheme. Meanwhile, the regulator has launched a safety-breach hotline and the consultation process for a "master" chain-of-responsibility code.
