Economic fluctuations at national or jurisdictional levels affect workforce numbers and working pace, meaning they are significantly associated with occupational injury and fatality rates and can be used as leading indicators that drive prevention strategies, a unique study has found.
Workers who don't believe they are provided with adequate PPE are at risk of post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions that can erode their ability to work safely, a study of service personnel operating in COVID-19-like environments has shown.
As COVID-19 pandemic restrictions ease across the country, a WHS regulator has outlined its policies for enforcing physical distancing rules for lifts in work buildings, transport operators have been told to closely monitor workers' health and separate them from passengers, and the Australian Industry Group has warned against tough penalties for working-at-home breaches.
At least 78 Victorian workers have been diagnosed with potentially deadly lung disease silicosis since the State Government banned certain high-risk work processes and launched a health screening program last year, figures released today show. Meanwhile, the former team manager of an A-League club has alleged he was bullied and injured in the role.
With the dramatic swing to working-from-home arrangements and new work technologies because of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Comcare "emerging evidence alert" has highlighted new research on the connection between technology acceptance, engagement and wellbeing.
The Fair Work Commission has admonished a large employer's human resources department and recommended it improve its practices, after a worker's stop-bullying application demonstrated the difficulties workers face when HR isn't actively involved in matters like injury management.
A court has recorded a conviction against a company and nearly doubled its fine for failing to reduce or eliminate height risks, while a regulator has called for employers to review their engineering control plans, following a string of electric shock incidents.
About half of all manual handling tasks require potentially hazardous pushing and pulling motions. Physical therapy experts have identified optimal methods to reduce spinal load and prevent musculoskeletal injuries from these tasks.
A major review of studies covering more than 270,000 police personnel, including from Australia, has found police are at greater risk of poor mental health and risky drinking than previously thought, highlighting the importance of stigma-reduction strategies and continuous rather than reactive "psychoeducation".
> NSW's COVID-19 work recovery tool guided by 100 years of crises; > SA employers should expect COVID call from a WHS inspector; > Vic workers told to keep working at home; and > Start date for ACT's labour-hire licensing scheme confirmed.
