On 1 December 2017 new regulations come into effect throughout New Zealand, which dictate the way businesses must manage hazardous substances. The New Zealand Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017 concern the handling, storage and disposal of the substances and include measures designed to protect the safety of those who work with them.
The City of Salisbury construction maintenance employee was required to undergo a random drug test in the middle of his shift. The worker claimed he slipped and injured his left shoulder in a toilet just prior to entering the drug testing centre.
An employee successfully recovered workers’ compensation payments from a driver who crashed and caused serious neck and shoulder injuries to the worker, her colleague and passenger.
A police officer has sought workers’ compensation for stress and depression after being “targeted” by senior police officers, and wrongfully accused of criminal activities.
A cleaner claims he has been underpaid more than $300,000 in wages, overtime, annual leave and superannuation by Woolworths and three contracting businesses, despite being invoiced both as a sole trader and a company, not as an employee.
CK Crouch Pty Ltd was contracted by poultry producer Baiada Poultry Pty Ltd for work at various chicken farms, including one in Lethbridge, Victoria.
When it comes to drug and alcohol policies, it has become clear there cannot be a ‘one size fits all’ approach. The policy adopted will depend on the industry, business and individual workplace.
An unnamed company has faced difficulties in having offending tweets removed. In May of this year, a Twitter user posted tweets whilst adopting the handle of the company’s chief executive.
A worker slipped and fell two meters on a work site, but failing to alert his supervisor to the unsafe working conditions resulted in him being found contributorily negligent in his own fall.
An employee of accountancy firm Crowe Horwath has been awarded almost $425,000 in damages by the Victorian Supreme Court, for the repudiation of his employment contract
The Queensland government has recently introduced a 67 page Work Health and Safety Amendment Bill so as to most notably: mandate safety measures in the WHS Codes of Practice; reintroduce the role of workplace health and safety officers; enable WHS Queensland inspectors to make on the spot determinations of WHS disputes; establish an independent statutory office for WHS prosecutions; prohibit duty holders from entering enforceable undertakings in lieu of prosecution for offences involving a fatality; and as the headline states – to introduce an industrial manslaughter offence with a 20 year jail term and $10 million in fines.
A Victorian appeals court has finally found the Victorian Civil Administration Tribunal decision in dismissing a worker’s equal opportunity claim to be erroneous, and has granted the depressed worker a right to argue for a new recourse at a full hearing.