A PCBU that claimed it wasn't contractually obligated to implement safety measures that could have prevented a fatality has been fined $500,000 for category 2 WHS breaches.
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.
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.
A coronial inquest has found a major workplace's "grossly deficient" record keeping was the main cause of a worker's asphyxiation death, and referred the actions "or inactions" of the manager allegedly responsible for updating the relevant records to a safety regulator for further investigation.
An international academy of leading occupational and environmental health experts has called for employers of all sizes to take all necessary steps to protect workers in the COVID-19 pandemic, which include appointing an "infection control officer", prioritising higher order controls and reducing exposure to dust and fumes, which increase the severity of infection.
> Indoor work temperature could affect COVID-19 spread; > Workplace consultation key to WHS compliance in pandemic; and > ACT workers affected by pandemic offered portable leave.
A company and its director have been fined nearly $160,000 after two young workers, including a work experience student, were injured in an explosion after being directed to mix hazardous chemicals in a home-made contraption.
An engineer and his company have been fined a total of $230,000 for breaching WHS laws in providing untested advice to a high-risk project, which led to an incident that could have killed two workers.
With the release of the national "roadmap" out of coronavirus restrictions, a senior WHS lawyer has urged employers to consult with workers and HSRs, identify COVID-19 risk factors unique to their business, and implement "pandemic plans" for positive diagnoses and transitioning workers back to remote work if the situation deteriorates.
