James Wood
Details coming soon.
Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 10 June 2024. When booking, please ensure you select the June Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.
At Central Safety Group's AGM on 12th February 2024, we were delighted to confer Life Membership on Frank Mistretta.
Frank joined Central Safety Group in 1980 and is proud to have maintained that membership continuously until today. He served on the Committee from 1980 to 1990 and was President from 1988 to 1989.
As President, Frank produced the first newsletter as a means of improving communication to members. This set the ball rolling for future innovations, including Kevin Jones’ excellent Safety Central newsletter that was emailed to members, and the eventual creation of the website, our greatest asset.
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When we were collating information about the history of CSG to celebrate our 60th anniversary, Frank sent us some gems, including about his own history in safety:
"I started at Red Tulip Chocolates in the late seventies as a Payroll Manager. In 1980, I provided management with a proposal to computerise the company’s payroll (2000+ employees) and costing system, which would commence showing a profit to the organisation within 12 months by making five positions redundant, including my own. This was approved and implemented, allowing me to take on the new position of Productivity/Safety Coordinator. My boss, the Personnel Manager, made membership of Central Safety Group mandatory and part of my position description.
"By 1984 I was Group Occupational Health & Safety Manager. That year Beatrice Foods Pty Ltd (the second largest corporation in America and owner of Red Tulip Chocolates) requested I attend a productivity improvement conference in Los Angeles, and then do a two-week study tour of the major companies owned by Beatrice Foods to learn about Productivity Improvement, Teams and Safety.
"I attended my first meeting of Central Safety Group at the Belvedere Motel in Church Street, Richmond. When the motel closed in the mid-1980s, CSG moved to the North Melbourne Football Club in Arden St, North Melbourne, to continue their monthly Tuesday meetings. The group has had several meeting sites since then.
"I can recall that, during the early years of my membership, it was a tradition at the Christmas meeting and lunch that members would donate a gift for the Christmas hamper for each member to take away on the day. Working at Red Tulip Chocolates, I would bring packets of ‘After Dinner Mints’.
"The other significant event I recall was the annual ‘Apprentice Safety Day’ with speakers (mainly members) on all things Safety. The members not only delivered the information and training sessions (3 or 4 in the morning and 3 in the afternoon), but also helped with the preparation and correction of the papers completed by the apprentices in attendance. In my early years on the committee, we would have close to three hundred, if not more, apprentices attending on the day, and it was fantastic to see the number of female apprentices’ attendance grow each year."
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Frank’s long career in safety has included almost 15 years leading the Risk Management team for the City of Darebin, before utilising his knowledge and skills across a number of different sectors. He also runs his own Risk Management consultancy, FM Risk Management.
Frank is a Fellow of the Safety Institute of Australia and a Certified Practising Risk Manager.
Frank has always been a committed member of our group and, in the words of Kevin Jones, “an unwavering support of OHS professionals who joined CSG. He provided the CSG meetings with an important local government perspective, in particular.”
He is indeed a worthy recipient of this honour.
Troy Winn
A visual approach to inductions
How do you move safety induction online yet keep it alive? Troy Winn will talk about how he met that challenge in a presentation on Tuesday, 9 April.
Troy, who is WHS Manager for the Simonds Group, recently completed a Masters in Ergonomics, Safety and Health at La Trobe University in Melbourne. His presentation is based on research he did in the Advanced Practice Stream as part of his postgraduate degree.
Working in the construction industry, Troy and his safety team were often investing several hours a week delivering safety inductions to site supervisors before they commenced a job. A high turnover of people and projects on sites made this a demanding commitment. Read more...
Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 8 April 2024. When booking, please ensure you select the April Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.
Kevin Jones
Some of the hot topics in OHS at the moment are not directly about work health and safety. You can find out more on Tuesday 12 March 2024 when Kevin Jones will be discussing what’s new, what’s getting attention, and some of the latest and re-emerging challenges in OHS.
His talk will include comments, and recommendations of books on issues including work psychology; the management of time; suicide; troublemakers; corporate values and leadership.
The presentation will be followed by a question and discussion session.
About the speaker:
Kevin Jones is a consultant and advisor in a wide range of OHS projects.
He is internationally recognised for his commentary and analysis on safety-related matters in his popular award-winning SafetyAtWorkBlog (safetyatworkblog.com).
Kevin is a Life Member of Central Safety Group.
Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 8 March 2024. When booking, please ensure you select the March Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.
Helen O’Keefe
If you are interested in what's happening in the current OHS job scene, either as a job seeker or employer, you’ll appreciate this presentation by Helen O’Keefe on 13 February 2024.
Helen is the Managing Director of HOK Talent Solutions, exclusively specialising in health and safety recruitment. She will share her insights about the OHS job scene from 2023, and talk through some of the challenges and opportunities she predicts will emerge for both hiring managers and job-seekers the year ahead
Helen will also share data her company has collected, which details the number of OHS jobs advertised across SEEK and LinkedIn (the two most popular job boards) in 2023, and how that compares to 2022. This data is cross-checked against reports released from the ABS, SEEK and other sources to understand the "why" behind it.
Helens' presentation will include an opportunity for questions and discussion.
The presentation will be followed by the 2023 AGM for Financial Members.
About the speaker:
Helen O’Keefe is the founder of HOK Talent Solutions, which specialises in national HSE recruitment.
Helen has a passion for the health and safety industry, and had been working in recruitment for this sector before founding her own agency in 2015.
Prior to this, her background includes working as National Recruitment Manager for the Australian Red Cross, and as an HR consultant with pharmaceutical company GSK.
Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 12 February 2023. When booking, please ensure you select the February Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.
On the 13th February 2024, Central Safety Group held its 2023 AGM.
As an incorporated association, CSG must hold an annual general meeting and submit our financial statement to Consumer Affairs Victoria.
As there were no new nominees, this meeting confirmed the CSG Committee members as listed below:
Due to pending retirements, all members are encouraged to consider nominating for a committee role to ensure effective handover and longevity of your CSG as we move into our 64th year of sharing safety knowledge. We particularly need committee members with strong social media and IT skills. If you are interested, please go to the Contact US section on our home page.
In addition to the formal election of committee members and receipt of the Annual Report and Financial Statement, the AGM raised two proposals that were accepted unanimously. The first was to increase Corporate Member’s fee to $350 per calendar year (whilst maintaining the individual membership fee at $85). The Corporate Membership fee has remained at $300 ever since this tier of membership was introduced over 10 years ago. As Individual fees have increased steadily over the same period, it was thought that corporate membership fees were due for a modest increase.
Currently the annual fee allows corporations to send up to 3 employees to in-person events at the membership price (Zoom attendance is unlimited). This will increase to 4 employees when the fee increases in 2025.
The second proposal was to accept Frank Misteretta as a Life Member of CSG. Frank has maintained continuous membership since 1980 and has served on the committee in various roles including President.
Many thanks to those who attended the AGM as we look forward to another great year!
Log in to view the Minutes, Annual Report and Financial Statement.
Now that we are in full swing of the hybrid format for our monthly presentations, we regularly look for ways to improve their delivery.
Towards the end of last year, I made a trip to Officeworks' Russell Street store to investigate microphones that would make our recordings sound better, particularly during the discussion portion of presentations.
An assistant was helping me to navigate the many options and, while I was focussing on the cheaper versions, I mentioned that I was purchasing on behalf of a not-for-profit organisation. He summoned the Store Manager, Dan, who outlined their program of supporting local organisations and community groups. Every month each store's team selects the local charity or group they would like to support based on connections within community, and who needs it most.
I had a good discussion with Dan about Central Safety Group and our place within the Melbourne health and safety community, then followed up with an email containing more detail and a link to our website.
A couple of weeks later I received the great news that Officeworks Russell Street wanted to sponsor our group with a microphone. We chose a Blue Yeti Nano model, valued at $158. It had its first outing at our February event and the sound in the room is nice and clear on the recording.
We are very grateful for Officeworks' generous support, and we give particular thanks to Dan!
CSG Annual Networking Lunch
We had an excellent turnout for our end-of-year gathering, the first one we've been able to hold since 2019, so it was extra special. There was certainly a great atmosphere with plenty of networking taking place amongst the enjoyment of each other's company.
We chose a less formal setting this year, partly because the cost of holding the event at Parliament House has now climbed out of our range. Instead we opted for a Middle Eastern Feast at Mama’s Canteen, which is situated in the super handy location of Federation Square overlooking the Birrarung. The food was delicious and we were blessed with good weather, so spirits were high.
It was also great to see a mix of members at the event, from some who have been members for decades to others who joined just in the last year.
It is thanks to our financial members that we are able to hold this annual event, which is so important in fulfilling our function as a networking group. For all the advantages of a Zoom event, it is these opportunities to meet face-to-face that give real life to Central Safety Group.
If you have any feedback to share with us about the event, we would love to hear from you. Write to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
We look forward to another great year of events and seeing you there!
CSG Annual Networking Lunch
It's time to celebrate another great year of Central Safety Group events and speakers! We are thrilled to be able to return to our end-of-year gathering, where members and friends can network whilst enjoying a delicious lunch.
This year's event is a Middle Eastern Feast at Mama’s Canteen that includes 3 courses, soft drinks, tea & coffee (vegetarian, vegan and gluten free options available). What's more, it's at a very convenient location in Federation Square overlooking the Birrarung.
CSG would like to take this opportunity to thank our financial members for their support in 2023 that has made this event possible.
RSVP by close of business Monday 11 December 2023
Professor Helen Lingard
In the past the construction industry has been known for being resistant to improvements affecting worker safety and wellbeing. However, the situation is now changing, according to Professor Helen Lingard, a leading expert in construction safety, whose research over the years has been widely translated into improved work health and safety policy and practice in the construction industry.
This will be the topic of Professor Lingard’s lunchtime presentation to Central Safety Group on Tuesday 10 October. Helen will discuss some of the main health and safety issues affecting workers in the construction industry, and changes in practices and culture that are now making a difference.
This will include some of her work on the effect of long and non-standard work hours on workers' health and wellbeing.
Her presentation will be followed by questions and discussion.
About the speaker:
Helen Lingard is a Distinguished Professor of Construction Management in the School of Property, Construction and Project Management at RMIT University, Melbourne. She has a PhD in construction safety, and has been with RMIT for 15 years.
Having started her career working for a contracting organisation in the civil engineering sector, Helen has undertaken extensive applied research in the areas of workplace safety and workers’ health and wellbeing in the construction industry. Helen has also provided consulting services in the infrastructure, telecommunications and mining sectors.
Helen has authored or co-authored numerous papers and books. Her most recent book is "Work, Health and Wellbeing in the Construction Industry", with co-author Michelle Turner, which was published in May 2023.
Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 9 October 2023. When booking, please ensure you select the October Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.
