Work Cover Notes from May 09 Presentation

Workplace Safety

OH & S compliance.
↓state based (big companies under federal Eg: Linfox)

Workcover administer
v OH&S
v Injury management – return to work
v Workers compensation.

Business advisory centre – officers
v 1 on 1 advisory visit
v Workshops
v Seminars

Why is workplace safety so important?
v Protect business owners
v Cover staff injury – moral delegations
- Visitors
- Community
- Family
- Customers
v Productivity
v Better environment – safe
v Lower premiums
v OHS – funding arrangements
v Staff not taking time off work
v Positive culture
v Reduce financials cost to staff and business
v Legal requirements

Who is responsible for workplace safety?
v Employers
v Employees
v Contractors

Legislation OHS Act 2000
OHS Regulations 2001

Safety is a procedure
v Document all issues / responsibly falls on employers and employees Eg. training staff

Employers Responsibilities
Ø Ensure any premises controlled – safe and without risk.
Ø Ensure any plant or substance provided – safe and without risk.
Ø Ensure any systems of work and working environment – safe and without risk.
- provide information, instruction, training and supervision
- provide adequate facilities

Employees Responsibilities
Ø Must co-operate with their employer to comply with safety requirements
Ø Take reasonable care for the health and safety of themselves and others at work
Ø Follow safe work procedures
Ø Report safety problems to their supervisor
Ø Use equipment safety
Ø Use safety equipment provided.

Need to have OHS procedures all staff needs to be aware. New staff needs to be aware of procedures.

Controllers of premises, plane or substances must:
Ø Ensure the premises they lease to tenants are safe and without risk to health
Ø Ensure safe means of access and exits from the premises.
Ø Ensure any plant or substance provided is safe and without risks to health when properly used.
Ø Controller responsibilities for ongoing repairs and maintenance may be influenced by lease or contract.

Contractors:
Ø Ensure activities or the activity they undertake do not pose health and safety risks to themselves and others.
Ø Identify, assess and control the risks that may be caused by their undertakings.

Consultation:
Ø What is it?
Talking to your employees and others.
v Sharing information about workplace health and Safety
v Allowing employee input before decisions are made
v Valuing employee views and taking them into account.

Ø Why do it?
v Better understanding
v Feel included in
- Improved management decisions through gathering a wider sources of ideas about OHS
- Greater employee commitment through better understanding of OHS decisions, employee ownership of consultation outcomes.
- Healthier working environments and increased productivity
- Reduced injuries and associated business cost.
- Consultation about workplace safety is a legal obligation.
Ø What to consult about? and when to consult?
v 1st day on job
v Flu over first few weeks
v Buying new equipment / plant
v Regular updates with staff
v Changes to premises, systems of work, plant or substances used in work which may affect the health and safety
v When assessing and controlling risks
v Facilities for employee welfare
v Procedures for consultation

Ø How to Consult?
1. OHS committee ( >20 employees) OR
2. OHS representative ( 1 or more rep) OR
3. Any other agreed arrangements – toolbox meetings weekly / monthly.

Ø Ideas for OHS meetings
One a month in staff meetings:
- OHS training
- OHS processes
- OHS issues
- OHS problems and solutions.

Log Meetings in book if in meetings put in minutes.

The Risk Management approach to Workplace Safety

v Identity hazards – potential to cause harm
v Identify risk – risk to it happening.

How do you identify workplace hazards?

Ø Hazard reporting system
- daily diary
- email to OHS rep
- report in OHS book
Ø conduct workplace audit and inspections
- monthly checks
Ø small business checklist
Ø check records
- Register of injuries
- Reports on accidents, near misses
- Reports / complaints for supervise employees or visitors.
- Consider your employees, Eg: those from multicultural backgrounds, differing literacy levels, skill levels etc.

Starting a risk assessment

Three basic questions to ask
- What could go wrong? Hazard
- How bad could it be? Consequences
- How likely is it to happen? Likelihood
Include a risk rating score, for example: low rating 1 – 6 high rating.

Hazard Control
- Plan to fax the most dangerous hazards first
- Take action immediately on hazards that are easy to fix – this demonstrates commitment to the process and helps to motivate your employees.
- Prioritise the remaining hazards to ensure that all hazards are controlled.
- The results in systematic elimination of OHS hazards in the workplace stating with the most serious or highest rating.

Control Hazards and Eliminate
- Eliminate hazards and risks
- Repair or replace faulty equipment
- Purchase pre-cut material
- Outsource hazardous work processes
- Purchase substances in container sizes that do not require decanting or material handling equipment move them.

Control Risks

Eliminate / Minimise
1. Substitute the hazard for a lesser risk
a. Use a different, less dangerous piece of equipment.
b. Use safer materials or chemicals.
2. Isolate the hazard from peoples at risk
a. Separate people from hazardous process or equipment
3. Remove or reduce the risk through engineering means
a. Engineering changes to equipment / or the environment to remove or reduce the risks eg: adding machine guards, installing exhaust fens.
4. Remove or reduce the risk through administrative means
a. Written work procedures
b. Job rotation / rest breaks
c. Training
d. Supervision
5. Use personal protective equipment (PPE)
a. PPE is the least effective control measure for eliminate or minimising risks.
b. PPE is only effective when it is in good condition and always worn properly.
c. People need to know how to wear the PPE and how to fit and look after it.
d. The use of PPE requires a high level of supervision.

Reviewing and monitoring your controls
- Conducting physical audits of the control measures.
- Checking your records Eg: register of injuries, accident reports etc.
- Talking to your employees
- Listening to your employees when they talk to you.

Planning for safety
- Make a list of things for improve.
- Specify clearly what you want to achieve
- Identify who is responsible to make it happen.
- Allocate appropriate resources
- Set a date to have done by.

Safety solutions
- $500 rebate – need to see Jay Lewis
www.workcover.nsw.gov.au / safe business.

Workers Compensation

Workcover provides.

Policy employer responsibilities
- Maintain a current workers compensation policy.
- Maintain wage records for 5 years.
- Advise your scheme agent of any changes to your business activities
- Submit wage estimates and actually to your scheme agent
- Post summary to Act.

Policy – Small employer exemption
- From 30 / 06 / 2008 employer paying wages of $7500 or less per annum will be exempt.

Policy – Covers
- Working directors
- Casuals
- Trainees and apprentice
- Deemed workers / contracts
- (doesn’t cover owners)
- Sole trades need personal accident cover (income protection)

What is covered?
- Wages
- OT
- Sick payments
- Super
- Shift and other allowances
- Payments for public and annual holidays
- Working direction fee

Premiums small employees
- Small employers are not impacted
< $10,000 tariff premiums
> $300,000 wages
- medium
> $10,000 - < $50,000 tariffs
$500,000 wages

Premiums
- quarterly premiums
- monthly instalments
- upfront you get a discount

Apprentice incentive scheme
- Apprentice wages not included in assessment.
- On workers comp. policy
- Must be on NSW DET approved course.
- Apprentice in a designated trade vocation

Premiums for Contractors
- Contractor may be liable for portion of unpaid premium of their sub contractors.
- Principal contractors may be responsible for the claims of uninsured sub contractors

Claims Process

Injury management
- attend to workers
- notify scheme agent within 48 hrs
- ensure injury register completed
- provide required information
- Injury management and return to work plan.

NOTE Notify Workcover of serious incidents immediately.

Claims
- communicate with our employee
- record information
- lodge with insurer
- consult with doctor / insurer / employee

Return to work program
- suitable duties
> After 6 months off work get $350 per week