Central Safety Group Melbourne

Changing OHS culture in construction

One can only marvel at the depth and breadth of research Professor Helen Lingard has undertaken and drawn upon in her work in OHS in the construction industry. We had a taste of it during her presentation on 10th October and luckily her power point is available to financial members to look at it more closely.

Behind the figures, however, is a wealth of knowledge that informs improvements in safety culture. One of the main topics Helen covered was hours of work, where a large data set has identified a tipping point between hours worked and mental health issues. Perhaps unsurprisingly, that point is different for men and women. One finding that fascinated me was the fact that practical support from supervisors matters more than emotional support when it comes to dealing with prolonged hours of work.

Long hours of work is just one of the three main drivers in a poor culture, the other two being lack of diversity and wellbeing issues. Helen talked about a culture project that began in 2018, from which a Culture Standard has been developed that is now part of a pilot program in NSW & Victoria. Helen recommends visiting the website to learn more about it: https://www.constructionindustryculturetaskforce.com.au/

 A really interesting innovation Helen spoke about was an online role playing game that has been developed to improve skills, especially among young construction workers. It was developed from the time not so long ago when face-to-face training was not an option, and draws upon real-life scenarios. There has been some positive feedback about it so far, and one can imagine how such an initiative would appeal to a younger cohort.

Once again we had the speaker and several attendees in the room, which is such a boon for stimulating discussion. In this case we had two attendees from WorkSafe's Construction Division, including an Inspector and it was great to gain his insights as well. He said that the different cultures at different workplaces are palpable.

Financial members can listen to the extensive discussion as well as Professor Lingard's excellent presentation by clicking on the link below (login first).

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New thoughts on the role of ergonomics

Central Safety Group is privileged every year to hear the latest in the world of Ergonomics and Human Factors from Professor David Caple AM and this year did not disappoint. In fact, he is such a drawcard that we had a big attendance both online and in the room. It was great to have a hybrid meeting, where those in the room were able to pick David's brain as well as enjoy the networking opportunites. We hope this is the start of a new trend for our events.

David's talk followed his attendance at two recent international conferences and was so up-to-date that the proceedings from the conferences aren't even out yet. At the first conference he caught up with Pierre Falzon, who some members will recall, visited Australia in 2004 and gave an excellent presentation to CSG at the time.

One of the most fascinatng topics of David's presentation was that of the ratio between human wellbeing and systems performance. It is on the latter that industry spends their money and so, this is the angle ergonomists need to take in order to achieve the former. Leaders have a big influence on safety and David provided a great example of this.

The other topic that came up in the second conference is the enormous impact of AI on ergonomics, and this certainly stimulated quite a bit of discussion in the room.

David also alerted us to a new assessment tool from the UK, and to the fact that the La Trobe tool has been updated to include psychosocial factors. Links to these tools are in his power point presentation.

Finally, David gave a plug for the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society of Australia (HFESA) conference that will be held in Adelaide this year from 19-22 November. More information can be found here.

Financial members can access all of David Caple's previous presentations in our CSG archives. Once logged in, click on the Speakers tab on the banner at the top of the page, then type in "David Caple" in the Search box.

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Professor Helen Lingard

Date & Time: Tuesday 10 October 2023, noon

CSG Hybrid Lunchtime Presentation -via zoom or in the room

Speaker: Distinguished Professor Helen Lingard, Director, Construction Work Health and Safety Research, RMIT University

Topic: Changing OHS culture in construction

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.

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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.

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Victorian Tunnelling Centre

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Professor David Caple

Date & Time: Tuesday 12 September 2023, noon

CSG Hybrid Lunchtime Presentation -via zoom or in person

Speaker: David Caple AM, Adjunct Professor, Centre for Ergonomics & Human Factors, La Trobe University

Topic: TBA

Details coming soon

Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 11 September 2023.  When booking, please ensure you select the September Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.

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Dr Marilyn Hubner

Date & Time: Tuesday 14 November 2023, noon

CSG Hybrid Lunchtime Presentation -via zoom or in the room

Speaker: Dr Marilyn Hubner, Manager, OHS Body of Knowledge

Topic: Recent research results in OHS and their relevance in the workplace

Some recent research findings in OHS and their relevance in the workplace will be discussed by Dr Marilyn Hubner in a presentation to Central Safety Group on Tuesday, 14 November.

Marilyn is Manager of OHS Body of Knowledge (OHS BoK) with the Australian Institute of Health & Safety (AIHS), which publishes collective knowledge that should be shared by generalist OHS professionals.

A leading professional in safety education and training, Marilyn promotes the importance of safety professionals being engaged in evidence-based research and applying it in their workplace programs.

Her talk will be followed by questions and discussion.

Note: OHS BoK has recently released Chapter 39.1: The OHS professional as a ‘critical consumer’ of research.

About the speaker:

Dr Marilyn Hubner has been developing and delivering safety training programs for over 20 years, and was appointed OHS Body of Knowledge Manager with the AIHS in January 2023.

Marilyn’s background includes Managing Director of Buildup Research, and eight years as National Research and Training Support Co-ordinator for the National Safety Council of Australia (NSCA). She has also been an Awards Judge with NSCA for the past 11 years.

Marilyn’s PhD thesis, completed in 2016 from Victoria University, is titled “Constructing Safety Training: Foundations of Attitudes and Perceptions of the Construction Site Supervisor”.

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Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 13 November 2023.  When booking, please ensure you select the November Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.

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Facing a rise in customer aggression

It is always such a pleasure to have a speaker who is so knowledgeable about their topic and, therefore, so engaging. Such was the case with Amy Lynes' presentation to us. Not that it was a pleasant topic to speak about -some of the statistics and scenarios Amy shared with us were quite shocking.

Amy is a member of the legal practice that sits within the National Retail Association (NRA) and their data shows that customer aggression was already a big issue before Covid and has increased since. I'm sure many of us are aware of how this has led to an exodus of staff from many businesses. Retailers of all sizes are turning to the NRA for guidance, and there has been sky-rocketing demand for their courses that deal with this issue as well as others, such as sexual harrassment. It is interesting to note, however, that there is only so much a staff member can do when the root cause is the badly-behaved customer.

Amy and her colleagues work actively to raise awareness in various capacities, such as making submissions to draft bills and developing campaigns -e.g. the "No-one deserves a serve" campaign with the union (Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association). She noted, however, that laws are made, but the issue becomes whether those laws are used.

Amy talked about innovative approaches by some retailers and how they need to be tailored to particular circumstances. For instance, depending on the type of brand as well as the location. In the case of the latter, the approach for a street-front store is different from one in a shopping mall.

One striking take-home message for me was that, for young workers in fast food and retail, it is often their first job. They may not know what is acceptable or unacceptable and, therefore, what should be reported, especially when it comes to sexual harassment. Not to mention that they are unlikely to be equipped with the skillls to deal with difficult situations. Something all of us should be aware of when we are customers.

That is why it's important to have organisations like NRA available as a resource for employers and employees alike. As Amy said, it is so helpful to learn from others. That is the CSG ethos as well of course!

Financial members may be interested to revisit our March 2020 presentation Dealing with customer abuse (log in first). Kenn Rogers spoke about how the Reject Shop deals with customer abuse of their young workforce.

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Amy Lynes

Date & Time: Tuesday 11 July 2023, noon

CSG Hybrid Lunchtime Presentation -via zoom or in person

Speaker: Amy Lynes, Senior Workplace Relations Consultant, National Retail Association

Topic: Facing a rise in customer aggression

Retail workers are currently confronted by a trend of rising bad behaviour from customers, manifest as frustration, anti-social behaviour and aggression, which is affecting employees’ workplace safety and wellbeing.

This issue will be discussed in a presentation on 11 July by Amy Lynes, Senior Workplace Relations Consultant with the National Retail Association (NRA).....read more

Note: RSVP by close of business Monday 8 May 2023.  When booking, please ensure you select the July Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.

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Site Visit: Victorian Tunnelling Centre

Date & Time: WEDNESDAY 14 June 2023, noon

Location: Holmesglen Institute Drummond Street campus, Chadstone

Numbers limited -book early to secure your place.

Site Visit -Victorian Tunnelling Centre
The Victorian Tunnelling Centre (VTC) at Holmesglen Institute’s Drummond Street campus in Chadstone offers specialist training to workers in the construction and operation of a variety of tunnels including rail, road, and utilities tunnels.....read more

Note: RSVP by close of business Friday 9 June 2023.  When booking, please ensure you select the June Event from the dropdown list (shaded orange), to RSVP.

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Health and Safety Representatives – Partners in safety

We have been very pleased to welcome WorkSafe Victoria as a Corporate Member this year and now to have one of their HSR Support Officers, Mike Craig, present to us. The feeling was clearly mutual, because Mike sent a thank you note to the organisers and attendees saying "[There was] some lovely feedback from the participants and some great questions from the audience at the end. Please pass along my thanks to all and sundry."

It is clearly a topic of great interest to our membership, as there was a big turnout for this presentation. It was particulalry timely for some of those present, because they had either just conducted HSR training in their workplace or were about to do so. In fact, it was great to see some HSRs from Melbourne Polytechnic in the audience.

Mike sees HSRs as WorkSafe's eyes and ears on the ground, and so it is a three-way partnership between HSRs, the employer and the regulator. He outlined the powers of HSRs, both what they can do and what they can't do. It is important to point out that they are not a replacement for a safety professional. He made the analogy with First Aiders, who are not required to do more than they are trained to do, but are a first port of call prior to the arrival of paramedics.

One of Mike's key messages about his role as an HSR support officer is that his main purpose is to support consultation in workplaces. Indeed, with consultation and representation being principles of health and safety protection under the Act, HSRs and Health & Safety Committees are vital links in the safety chain.

Mike also mentioned a range of supports available to HSRs from WorkSafe, including a monthly newsletter to which he encourages HSRs subscribe.

Mike's talk stimulated quite a bit of discussion, which is included in the video recording.

Financial members may be interested to read a report from Professor David Caple's presentation in August 2012 What additional support can WorkSafe provide for Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs)? (log in first) to gain an historical perspective and see what progress has been made since David's review.

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