Australasian Mine Safety is the leading voice for all key decision makers within Mining company's and major contractors. Delivering the latest industry news as it breaks.
Issue link: http://ebook.aprs.com.au/i/29218
FOREWORD 2011, A CRITICAL YEAR TO IMPROVE HEALTH AND SAFETY We need your help 2011 will be a critical year for all Safety, Occupational Health & Safety (OHS), and Health Safety & Environment (HSE) stakeholders, after Safe Work Australia released, on 7 December 2010, the draft Model Work Health and Safety Regulations, priority model Codes of Practice and an Issues Paper for public comment. The model Work Health and Safety Act and the associated regulations and codes of practice are the most significant and much needed national reforms to OHS laws in Australia in over 30 years. These new laws are also not limited to the workplace and will apply to work wherever it is done in Australia as part of a business, that is, they apply as much to the home as they do to the workplace, as much to the road, rail, sport, airports, a hotel room, a shopping centre as they do to a factory, a shop or an office. Additionally, in 2011 the development and implementation of an OHS Body of Knowledge by the Health and Safety Professionals Alliance (HaSPA) will address important milestones such as the Course Accreditation and Professional Certification. The Body of Knowledge is important for all practicing and future OHS professionals nationally as not only will it form the basis for professional certification but educators of OHS professionals will use it to inform the development of their learning programs and OHS professionals will use it to guide their professional development. The Body of Knowledge will also be important to regulators, employers and recruiters as a standard for OHS professionals. Initially, this major project is directed to university-level OHS professional education but this does not preclude the professional accreditation process being applied in the future to VET- level OHS qualifications and VET qualified safety/OHS practitioners. However, whilst improvements through the Harmonisation of OHS Laws and the development of a OHS Body of Knowledge will prove to be important in assisting to reduce death, injury and illness in, for example, workplaces, the following research report released in December 2010 by the Safe Work Australia Chair, Tom Phillips AM, provides a clear reminder that there is still much to be done by everyone, including safety, OHS and HSE professionals, regulators, all industry sectors including mining, and professional associations like the SIA, to ensure safer workplaces for all Australians: 4 AUSTRALASIAN MINE SAFETY JOURNAL “Research report on workplace fatalities, Work-related Traumatic Injury Fatalities, Australia 2007-08. (Source – Safe Work Australia website.) This is the fifth report in a series that estimates the number of workers and bystanders killed each year due to work- related injuries. To achieve the best estimate, Safe Work Australia examines three datasets that contain information on work-related fatalities. These datasets include the National Data Set for Compensation-based Statistics, the Notified Fatalities Collection and the National Coroners Information System. Not all traumatic work-related fatalities are notified to work health and safety authorities. Some key findings of the report include: • A total of 442 work-related traumatic injury fatalities occurred in Australia during 2007–08, a six per cent decrease from the 2006-07 total of 469, but above the five year average of 439. • Of the 442 people who died of work- related injuries, 289 people were injured at work; 98 people died while commuting to or from work and 55 bystanders died as a result of someone else’s work activity. • Deaths in all three categories above were lower than in 2006-07, with fatalities due to commuting reaching a five year low.” The Safety Institute of Australia Inc (SIA) welcomes the opportunity to support the Australasian Mine Safety Journal. Visit www.sia.org.au for details. The SIA is also proud to have the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AuSIMM) as one of its strategic partners. The SIA is a not-for-profit, apolitical, independent, national peak body for health and safety professionals. It has a total of nearly 4,000 members within Australia and internationally. The SIA’s Vision is professional excellence facilitating and communicating health and safety for all. Gary Lawson-Smith Chief Executive Officer Safety Institute of Australia Inc (SIA) As SIA CEO, Gary has assisted the Institute to grow its brand, influence and membership by establishing professional excellence and strategic partnerships as key strategies to achieving much needed improvements in health and safety for all. Prior to joining the SIA in May 2007, Gary had 37 successful years in civil aviation, uniquely working on both sides of the “aviation fence”, including employment as a senior manager within Australia’s Airline Industry, its Air Traffic Services Provider and with not-for-profit organisations involved in promoting and facilitating aviation nationally and internationally. In these roles, Gary delivered significant safety, operational and environmental benefits both within Australia and the Asia Pacific Regions. In recognition of these major achievements he received the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators “Grand Master’s Australian Medal” in London and an Air Traffic Control Association “Special Medallion” Award in the USA.