Central Safety Group Melbourne

CSG: Over 60 years and still going strong

There are so many people to thank for the past and continuing success of Central Safety Group after more than 60 years of existence: an impressive roll call of volunteers who have run the group; expert speakers who have shared their knowledge freely; and loyal members who have supported us.

All of this was celebrated last October at our special lunch at Parliament House Victoria. I think the joyous atmosphere that day was enhanced by the fact that it was the first time we had all seen each other in person for more than two years. The networking side to CSG was on show and embraced enthusiastically -some of those connections have borne fruit already. Helen O'Keefe offered the use of her Board Room for our monthly events now that we have moved to a hybrid format -it is a great venue and Helen's generous sponsorship means that we are able to use it free of charge. Several people also offered to be presenters / source speakers / host site visits and we have already had a couple of those speakers this year -more to come. 

We were honoured to have Dr Narelle Beer, Executive Director of Health and Safety, WorkSafe Victoria attend and give the keynote address. We welcomed Narelle's commitment on behalf of WorkSafe Victoria to maintain ties with our group, which has been put into practice with WorkSafe Victoria becoming one of three Corporate Members that have joined CSG in 2023.

There were many other highlights of the day, including David Caple AM as MC, and Barry Naismith from OHS Intros giving a fascinating overview of the history of OHS in Victoria. Our longest-serving president, Ollie Matthews, was honoured for his 22 years of service to the group (1998-2022). He had flown in from South Australia for the day, interrupting a holiday in SA & NT! 

A scrapbook was handed around with documents and photos gathered over the years, which are forming part of a history being written by our Membership Co-ordinator. If you have any memories or achival material you would like to contribute to this project, please conatct Marina via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

I asked our current President, Nan Austin, for her reflections on the event and the future of CSG. She said: "Emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic, the CSG Committee confidently proceeded with plans to celebrate our 60 years of monthly discussions on workplace safety with a luncheon at the Victorian Parliament House Dining Room in October 2022. This event was all the more poignant with the recent closure of the Western Safety Group as the only other Victorian regional industrial safety group established under the Department of Labour still operating. Our history is displayed in our formal bank account name as the Central District Industrial Safety Group. I thank all our members, speakers and especially committee members who have supported CSG over these years. We are now planning a strategic review to ensure our continued relevance in the fast evolving sphere of workplace safety. We look forward to your contributions to this activity and our ongoing monthly events. We also welcome your reflections on our past, present and future."

For those who missed it, or others who would like to re-live this special occasion, we have produced a memorable package. There were a few technical challenges on the day, including our original plan for filming the speakers. However, our wonderful secretary Heather Turner saved the day by filming it with her phone and, while it will not be nominated for an Academy Award, it certainly captures the atmosphere well.

Financial members can view it here (log in first)

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Prevention of mental injury at work – where can employers’ best direct their efforts?

It was a packed event in May including many first-time attendees, all of us eager to hear Claire Nivarovich. We were rewarded with a very interesting and practical presentation.

WorkSafe statistics show that only 54% of workers have returned to work 6 months after mental injury; by 2 years, 38% still have not returned to work. They also show that mental injury claims have been increasing steadily across all workplaces over the last 4 years.

As a result WorkSafe has been targeting initiatives to assist vulnerable workers and employers. These range from reducing the time to asses claims and creating videos and guidance notes to developing an online toolkit: Workwell Toolkit

Claire guided us through the toolkit, showing us how a dashboard can be tailored to the user and how to access a wealth of information. There are resources to deal with a wide range of situations; these include ways to implement prevention practices in your workplace. Claire's unit did a road test of the kit to ensure it offers practical and easily accessible advice.

Claire ended her talk with a call to action to those present: they are keen to receive feedback from employers, so give the toolkit a go!

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A WorkSafe Inspector’s-eye view

We had something special in July. The group enjoyed hearing a WorkSafe Inspector’s-eye view from speaker Les Cameron, who has worked in that role for over 20 years.

Les also gave a run-down on some current priorities and events happening at WorkSafe Victoria, including this year’s relocation of its Melbourne CBD head office with several hundred roles to Geelong.

Of particular interest to the audience was Les’s account of some of the problems he’d inspected, where lack of attention to small details had led to major incidents. In other examples, he showed how careless practices or ignoring the rules had put sites in serious danger. He also talked about some WorkSafe intervention programs currently being tested.

Unfortunately we are unable to provide the presentation from this meeting. If you want to make sure you don't miss out on any of our great speakers, put the second Tuesday of the month in your calendar and come along to our meetings.

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Date & Time: Tuesday 10 July 2018 at 12:00pm Venue: Level 1, 333 Queen Street Melbourne (AMS Consulting Group)

A WorkSafe Inspector’s-eye view

Les Cameron, WorkSafe Inspector, WorkSafe Victoria.

Things have been happening at WorkSafe Victoria, including the relocation this year of its head office along with several hundred roles from Melbourne CBD to Geelong.
This and other current changes, projects and priorities at WorkSafe will be outlined by seasoned WorkSafe Inspector Les Cameron in a lunchtime presentation on 10 July.
Les will also have something to say about his work on the front line, discussing incidents and some new intervention programs now being tested.
Questions, comments and discussion will be welcome during the session.

Note: When booking for the Event, please ensure you select the July Meeting from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP to this meeting.

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