> WHS amendments mandate "competent" managers in SA; > WHS conviction and $400k fine followed by NSW blitz; and > Beaconsfield rescuer fronts worker and family support group.
An employer has been fined $400,000 over the death of an inexperienced worker, in a decision that could jeopardise its ability to tender for Commonwealth-funded work.
> Employer fined $850k over missing SWMS and fatality; > Individual convicted for hindering WHS investigation; and > More WHS offences attract on-the-spot fines in NT.
Three employers, including a repeat offender, have been convicted and fined a total of $245,000, after a worker was killed on a public street, and other workers were seriously injured by an unguarded machine and an act of violence.
Dreamworld theme park owner Ardent Leisure Ltd has been charged with three category-2 breaches of its WHS duty to "other persons", after the park's 30-year failure to identify and control risks on its Thunder River Rapids Ride resulted in the October 2016 deaths of four patrons.
> High-risk occupations overlooked in COVID-19 pandemic; > Warnings issued after crane and hose deaths; and > Another WHS regulator issues white card safety warning.
> NSW employers warned on COVID fines and enforcement plans; > Comcare issues reminder on coronavirus notifications; and > SA relaunches WHS audit prompted by fatalities.
A company director jailed over the death of a worker has unsuccessfully claimed, on appeal, that his conviction and sentence should be quashed because he could not have eliminated the relevant risk through the control measures identified by the prosecution.
A leading safety expert has questioned the reality behind Australia's improving workplace fatality rates, and urged OHS professionals to become HR and business experts and more politically engaged.
An appeals court has examined the reach of workplace control provisions and the duty to tackle subsisting risks, in an important judgment upholding a $230,000 fatality fine.
