Tuesday 12 March 2019
Combustible dust can be a hidden chemical hazard in workshops, factories, storage facilities and many other places. Because it’s not classified as a hazardous substance or as dangerous goods, it is often ignored in workplace procedures and risk control. The significance of this will be discussed by chemical hazards expert Richard Greenwood in a lunchtime presentation to Central Safety Group on 12 March
The consequences of not recognising the presence of combustible dust were dramatically demonstrated recently when two workers doing routine maintenance were seriously injured in a workplace explosion in Victoria. The result was an Enforceable Undertaking for the company involved, including preparation of basic workplace training materials and a video for awareness of the hazard. Richard will talk about this case as part of its compliance with WorkSafe’s Enforceable Undertaking.
He will explain how fine combustible dusts are likely to form and potentially explode when disturbed in an enclosed space. He will also discuss how to detect and manage risks associated with this.
Richard Greenwood has spent over 25 years working in chemical safety training and consulting and has been involved in the development of some key chemical safety regulations. His career includes 15 years as Manager, Compliance and Training with Chemwatch, an international company with its headquarters in Australia. He now has his own business, RG Chemical Safety.
He is an honours science graduate from the ANU and holds a Masters in Bioorganic Chemistry from La Trobe University.
Date: Tuesday 12 March 2019
Time: 12:00pm to 1:00pm
Venue: TO BE ADVISED
Cost: Attendance: members free, non-members $10 Lunch (optional): sandwich and juice lunch $15
(Individual membership fee for 2019: $70)
RSVP: by close of business Friday, 8 March 2019
Online using our RSVP form
or phone the secretary T: (03) 9387 9768 Mobile 0417 040 252
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Note: To cover catering costs, the full fee will be charged for those who advised they would be having lunch but did not attend
Don’t forget to put every second Tuesday from February to December in your Calendar!
Presentation now available. Members only.
Key job market trends in safety in Australia were the subject of a presentation at the Central Safety Group’s first meeting for 2019 on 12 February.
OHS recruitment specialists Rachel McGregor and Ebonie Martello of Safety People gave a presentation followed by an extensive Q&A session with the audience.
They spoke about how employment trends are matching the industries experiencing a boom and presented a table of salary trends for various OHS positions in the Melbourne market. They noted that the demand for consultants is increasing and talked about the reasons for this as well as the implications for those seeking OHS roles.
They concluded by discussing what employers are looking for in a safety professional and what candidates are looking for in an employer. Then they opened the floor to the audience, which covered a wide range of topics.
Before joining Safety People, Rachel McGregor worked in WorkCover/Return-to-Work roles and Ebonie Martello was an OH&S Advisor with John Holland.
Presentation available now. Members only.
Throughout Australia there is unprecedented growth in all areas of construction – commercial, civil and residential. This boom has created issues relating to knowledge, skills and competencies needed at all levels of the construction workforce.
The issue of safety in this climate was discussed by Greg Splatt, a construction safety manager and trainer, in a lunchtime presentation for Central safety Group on 13 November.
Greg said that many people are coming into the industry with the promise of long-term work, long hours and good pay packets. But without the necessary industry experiences and know-how, what risk do they present on job sites? Challenges with safety understanding and experience can also exist at supervisor and manager level.
Greg also spoke extensively about his experiences with the unique OHS challenges during extensive construction rebuilds after major events such as cyclones and bushfires.
Greg Splatt has spent many years as a Safety Manager in the construction industry, and is also a trainer in various OHS courses with the Master Builders Association.
He has experience in all areas of construction and is an experienced safety systems auditor and incident investigator.
Prior to working in OHS, Greg was a detective in the Victorian Police Force."
Presentation coming soon. Members only.
There has been surprisingly little research done on how inspectors assess health and safety in workplaces. Although the inspectors’ task is grounded in rules and regulations, there are few standardised measures to assist them.
Dr Ross Donohue, our speaker on 9 October, has done ground-breaking work on this. He shared his research findings with us and outlined the 7-item generic OHS metric checklist he developed as a result of this research, in order to create a standardised tool to assist inspectors.
Ross also talked about the need for developing measures and training to assist OHS inspectors to assess psycho-social risk.
Dr Ross Donohue, Senior Lecturer, Monash University.
Dr Ross Donohue works in the Faculty of Business and Economics at Monash University as a Senior Lecturer.
He is currently working on a program to improve the training, competency assessment and development of safety inspectors.
His other work includes developing a competency-based framework and continuing professional development program for OHS regulators.
Presentation now available. Members only.
Many organisations have invested in sit-stand desks in response to experts’ claims about the benefits, ranging from reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes to solving back pain.
Professor David Caple discussed the latest knowledge on the effectiveness of sit-stand desks and issues surrounding their use on 11 September in a lunchtime talk to the Central Safety Group.
David recently presented two papers on this topic at the International Ergonomics Association Congress in Florence, Italy in August. He was part of a group of 16 presenters from around the world sharing the latest research relating to sit to stand desks.
There can be confusion about how much to use these desks while working, and whether a certain duration or pattern of standing should be prescribed. “In some places they are using them very well, but in other places employees and their managers are unclear about how to benefit from them. As a result, you’ll sometimes find people feeling guilty for not using them,” says David. “A lot of factors can affect how successful these desks are in the workplace. This includes things like the change management process, job design, employee education and work culture.”
David Caple, who has a background as an ergonomist, has been a leading figure in occupational health and safety in Australia for many years.
He has advised a wide range of businesses, industry groups and public sector organisations, and worked with Australian and overseas governments on work health and safety strategy.
He is an OHS consultant and Adjunct Professor, Centre for Ergonomics & Human Factors, La Trobe University.
David was awarded the AM – Member of the Order of Australia – in the 2018 Queens Birthday Honours list. The honour is in recognition of his “significant service to community health through workplace health and safety reforms and ergonomic policy development."
Presentation now available. Members only.
Contractor management is one of the most challenging areas of safety risk management. Contractor management systems can be onerous and complicated, leaving gaps when it comes to covering business and compliance requirements.
John Naughton and his team tackled this problem and transformed contractor management while he was Director of HSE at a major food company, and he shared his experiences at the August meeting of Central Safety Group.
He described the journey from a manual spreadsheet-based contractor management system to an easy-to-manage, efficient and flexible system embracing modern technology. This change also brought crucial new dimensions and features to the company’s system for managing contractors, and significantly, reduced administrative time and costs.
John Naughton has over 20 years’ experience designing, implementing and managing safety and environmental management systems for large companies.
In his recent role as Director of HSE at George Weston Foods, he was responsible for a team of over 50 HSE professionals in Australia, New Zealand and the Asia Pacific region. Prior to that he was National SH&E Manager for the Baking Division of Goodman Fielder.
Unfortunately we are unable to provide the presentation from this meeting.
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 were outlined by seasoned WorkSafe Inspector Les Cameron in a lunchtime presentation on 10 July.
Les shared his experiences of working on the front line and discussed incidents and some new intervention programs now being tested.
Les Cameron has spent over 20 years with WorkSafe as a dangerous goods and general inspector. He has also taught OHS/WHS for 10 years at Victoria University and Kangan Tafe.
Before that he was with the Board of Works and Melbourne Water in a range of roles, including deep sewer maintenance and Training and Rescue special operations. He has also worked as an occupational diver.
Les started work as a young teenager in the wool and mining industries in the NT, and went on to “railways, skinning rabbits and roofing” before he settled into a career in safety and related areas.
Presentation & exclusive pre-release OHSIntros Paper available to CSG Members only, now available.
What do the latest data and developments tell us about the current state of OHS in Victoria? Barry Naismith, who has done a keen-eyed independent analysis, shared his conclusions at the Central Safety Group lunch meeting on 12 June.
Barry was a consultant with the Victorian WorkCover Authority (now WorkSafe) for 14 years. Since then he has produced a number of independent reports into the operations and performance of WorkSafe Victoria.
He has just concluded his latest report, based on 2017, and discussed his findings and spell out some trends and predictions that are likely to be of interest to those working in OHS in Victoria.
To quote leading blogger Kevin Jones, “This level of analysis and interpretation is rarely available outside of formal academic research, and Naismith provides the all-important social and political context from which much academic occupational health and safety (OHS) research shies.” Questions, opinions and comments from the audience were welcomed.
Before a career in OHS, Barry Naismith worked as a journalist and editor. He spent more than 14 years with the Victorian WorkCover Authority and then worked independently as an OHS consultant. Recently this led to a position with Uniting Victoria, working on a program to reduce the impact of work harms on the community. Barry has qualifications in science from Melbourne University and media studies from RMIT.
Presentation now available. Members only.
Injuries and fatalities from contact between people and animals are known to be a high risk in zoos worldwide.
At Zoos Victoria a special program for working with dangerous animals is being supported by Jason Hensel, Senior Advisor, Health and Safety, who gave a presentation on this subject to Central Safety Group on 8 May.
Jason discussed how he has drawn on safety programs from a number of industries to develop effective and consistent controls for the safe keeping of all animals likely to endanger human life, known as Category 1 Animals.
Melbourne Zoo has 20 species of animal that fall into this category – ranging from the big cats to gorillas, hippopotamuses and African wild dogs. Jason has been working on risk assessments and safety systems for each of these, taking into account physical, mechanical, animal behaviour and human factors.
This initiative is part of Zoos Victoria’s aim to become a world leader in zoo safety. Zoos around the world put a sharp spotlight on safety following incidents such as a child falling into a gorilla exhibit at Cincinnati Zoo and the death of a keeper at New Zealand’s Hamilton Zoo.
Jason Hensel has been in his present role with Zoos Victoria since 2016. Before that, he worked in safety roles with Veolia Environmental Services and in OHS, process improvement and project management roles with Visy Industries.
He began his career as an electrical engineer with Southcorp Packaging, having graduated in this field from RMIT. He also has an Advanced Diploma in HS&E from RMIT.
Presentation now available. Members only.
Manual handling injuries are some of the most common and costly injuries in the workplace.
An account of how Jetstar Airways reduced these injuries by 40% was shared by Conor Healy, Manager, Work Health and Safety, Jetstar Australia New Zealand in a lunchtime presentation on 10 April.
Baggage handlers, cabin crews and engineering workshop teams all do a lot of manual handling at Jetstar, which now has 7,000 employees and is one of the world’s fastest growing airlines.
Conor developed a multi-pronged program to reduce manual handling injuries and the risk of musculoskeletal disorders for employees working in body stressing environments. In two years he has found that the program has already made a significant difference.
He discussed this program and what the airline is doing to continue to gain improvements in this area.
Conor Healy has been Manager, Work Health and Safety, Jetstar Australia New Zealand for three years.
His background includes significant experience in areas ranging from transport with London Underground, defence with BAE Systems to logistics with Toll and working with aerospace organisations.
He is a graduate of the University of Westminster in the UK and has attained an MBA in Strategy.
Presentation now available. Members only.
The new international standard for OHS Management Systems – ISO 45001 – has been finalised and was published the day before Kevin’s presentation on 13 March.
Kevin Jones has been following the evolution of this new Standard closely and considering its implications for Australia. He provided his perspective on ISO 45001 and how it could fit with your safety management systems.
Many are claiming this Standard is a “game changer”. Kevin believes it’s not, but it is important and it does include support for some of the OHS Principles which are now considered essential for effective safety and health management. He reviewed these features as well as providing a handout that summarised the different sections, comparing the new standard against AS4801 & OHSAS 18001.
Kevin Jones is well known for his award-winning SafetyAtWorkBlog. He has been a consultant, writer and commentator on OHS matters for many years, and recently launched a podcast series of interviews with leading safety experts (safetyoz.podbean.com).
Presentation now available. Members only.
Return to work for people who have suffered workplace psychological injury or illness can be a complicated and challenging process.
The best-practice approach and potential problems when helping employees recovering from mental health issues was discussed by Frank Imbesi, Managing Director of AMS Consulting, an occupational rehabilitation company.
This area is of special interest to Frank, who has been working in in the field of return-to-work planning, management and support for many years. He said that a lot is known about rehabilitation and return to work after physical injury, but far less about how to help people recovering from events or situations in the workplace that led to mental injury.
There has been a recent increase in the reporting and acceptance of mental injury conditions and claims, which has found many employers unsure and unprepared when it comes to dealing with the challenges of rehabilitation and preventing recurrence of the problem. Frank outlined a number of ways to assist employers with these challenges.
Frank Imbesi is Managing Director of AMS Consulting, a multi- award-wining company specialising in health and wellbeing, injury prevention, injury management, return to work consulting and human factors analysis . He began his career as a physiotherapist, working in sports medicine and clinical private practice, before moving to the field of occupational rehabilitation.
Frank has consulted and presented to national and large state based employers, Scheme Agents and universities in the areas of occupational rehabilitation and best practice return to work following occupational injury.
Frank has been a university lecturer and has presented in the areas of occupational injury management and best practice RTW over many years and on behalf of VWA. He has also presented at numerous conferences. He was on the organising committee for the international forum on disability management in 2014.
Frank was a member of the VWA Clinical Panel providing specialist advice in the area of occupational rehabilitation peer review for the duration of the program.
Frank was the recipient of the National Outstanding Achievement in RTW Award in 2017. He has also been a judge for the Australian Rehabilitation Providers Association Awards.
Presentation currently unavailable
Falls are a major cause of death and serious injury in Australian workplaces. But are current safety standards and regulations adequate to ensure protection for workers?
This important issue was discussed by David Davis, a member of the Executive Committee of the Australian Working at Heights Association at the November meeting of Central Safety Group.
David outlined a number of concerns the Association has about current industry guidelines and standards, as well as areas where there is a need to raise awareness.
This included his own review and critique of AS1657, the main Australian Standard covering fixed platforms, walkways, stairways and ladders, which was revised in 2013. David identified 20 shortfalls, omissions or areas of potential confusion in the revised standard. These were detailed in a report submitted to Standards Australia when the 2013 standard was released.
He gave a number of examples where people working in OHS need to be aware that the current revised AS1657 is inadequate.
David Davis became a Director of the Working at Heights Association of Australia in 2016. He is the owner of Hi-Rise Access Pty Ltd, a consulting and engineering company specialising in height safety, fall protection and suspended access.
David became interested and involved in the safety industry through a friend who was working in the field. He acquired his current company 12 years ago. Prior to that, he had a successful career in the computer software industry, creating and selling his own company and looking at retirement at the age of 40. His plans changed when he discovered and developed his passion for industrial and workplace safety.
Presentation now available. Members please login first.
Recent developments in some areas of OHS law in Victoria were discussed by leading OHS lawyer Graham Dent at the October meeting of Central Safety Group.
This included the relevance of the harmonised WHS laws in Victoria, trends in cases, courts and penalties, and the use of Enforceable Undertakings.
Graham gave examples to illustrate these issues and the implications of changes we see going on around us. He also discussed changes that may have quietly slipped past us.
Graham Dent has over 30 years’ experience in the regulatory field, including time as a government prosecutor in OHS, industrial and consumer law matters.
He is now in private legal practice representing clients in major regulatory actions for OHS, environmental and other areas. He represents clients and conducts training programs in all jurisdictions.
Graham is also the founder of Australia’s largest online OHS forum with 17,000 members, the Work Health Safety Leadership [Australia & International] Group.
Presentation now available. Members please login first.
What will OHS look like in the future? What jobs are likely to be available and skill sets required? Professor David Caple, a close participant and observer in the safety industry for over 40 years, examined these questions in his talk to the Central Safety Group on 12 September. David spoke about how the field of workplace safety has evolved, looking at the most important trends and changes over the years. He discussed what he sees as the latest significant developments in the area and where he sees things heading in the future. This included what OHS practitioners will be expected to know and do and the skills, background and experience they will need in the years ahead.
David Caple, who has a background as an ergonomist, has been a leading figure in occupational health and safety in Australia for many years. He has advised a wide range of businesses, industry groups and public sector organisations and worked with Australian and overseas governments on work health and safety strategy. He is an OHS consultant and Adjunct Professor, Centre for Ergonomics & Human Factors, La Trobe University.
Presentation coming soon. Members please login first.
There is growing recognition of the value of workplace peer support programs in helping employees at times of critical work incidents. The experience, learnings and benefits of a well-established peer support program were discussed by Jacqui Bloink, Workplace Wellbeing Program Manager, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne at the August meeting of Central Safety Group.
The hospital this year is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its award-winning staff peer support program, marking it as an early supporter of the concept of a team of colleagues helping one another with typical reactions to stressful events.
Jacqui gave a case study of the St Vincent’s program and outlined findings on how it meets the needs of its users, improves wellbeing and provides value for service.
She also discussed the evolution of such peer support programs and how they can stay relevant in the face of today’s workplace incidents and issues.
Jacqui Bloink has been responsible for managing St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne’s staff-support services, EAP Liaisons and Critical Incident Stress Management/Peer Support since 2000.
She has a background in emergency and intensiv
e care nursing, and has held roles in management, clinical education and project organisation, and served on St Vincent’s executive team. Jacqui was awarded the Critical Incident Stress Management Foundation Australia (CISMFA) achievement award in 2009 and the hospital’s peer support program was recognised in the 2016 Victorian Public Health Care Awards and the 2016 WorkSafe awards.
Presentation now available. Members please login first
There are many unique and complex safety challenges in the live performance industry, ranging from high risk work of theatre rigging and powerful electrical lighting, to manual handling of heavy sets and working with children and animals.
Chris talked about their approach to risk management that involves looking after the safety of entertainers, production teams and audiences. Chris believes there is a need for clearer universal standards and codes of practice in the industry and is working to have these established.
Chris Hayes has worked at Arts Centre for most of his career. He is a specialist in automation systems with special expertise in flying systems, safety and training.
Presentation now available. Members please login first.
Poorly designed work is unsafe work. Many times simple but important aspects are overlooked in the project planning stage, setting the scene for future problems. This was the message from David Trembearth, Safety Business Partner, People and Product Safety, Coles. When he spoke to the Central Safety Group on 13 June. David gave examples of how safety in design can make a difference, and discussed the key elements of good safety design both from a people management perspective and an organisational perspective.
He also outlined some of the steps in optimising safety when designing and managing a project.
David is a Certified Professional Ergonomist (HFESA) and a Chartered Generalist OHS Professional (SIA) and is Safety Business Partner for Coles providing safety support across all brands nationally. He has a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Human Movement, and Graduate Diplomas in OHS Management, Ergonomics and Teaching. A key driver in his role at Coles is Safety in Design. He has over 30 years of experience in the provision of health and safety advice, including professional/consulting roles in teaching, clinical massage, safety, ergonomics, injury management, and as a WorkSafe inspector.
Presentation now available. Members please login first
A lot is said about ‘safety leadership’. But what specifically can leaders do to shape an organisation’s safety culture? This was discussed by Wayne Richards, General Manager, Group Health Safety Environment & Quality, Transdev Australasia at a lunchtime presentation to the Central Safety Group at 12.15 pm on 9 May. Wayne talked about what is being done in Transdev. He also drew on his experience in senior safety roles with the MFB and the aviation and environmental services sectors. Transdev is a leading transport provider in Australia and NZ, operating train, bus, coach, ferry and light rail operations in partnership with public authorities and private companies. In Melbourne, this includes operating passenger transport services and school bus services on behalf of Public Transport Victoria.
Wayne commenced his role with Transdev in mid-2016. He was previously Director of Work Health and Safety with the MFB and Executive General Manager of SHEQ with Veolia. He holds a Masters of Business and Technology from the University of NSW as well as technical certificates in electronics. He is also a chartered professional member of the Safety Institute of Australia and Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Presentation now available. Members please login first
Automation is rapidly affecting everything from the agricultural and manufacturing sectors to the healthcare industry. An insight into what automation can mean for safety procedures and related workplace arrangements was given by Mark Letman of Pacific Brands on 11 April. Pacific Brands, which manufactures and sells products that include Bonds underwear and Sheriden sheets, recently automated some of the key procedures for picking and packing orders in its 43,000 square metre national warehouse in Truganina. Mark’s experience is that the move to automation has had some positive effects on working conditions “The automation’s taken away a lot of the hard slog and legwork in the warehouse, and it’s become a joint activity between employees and the machine,” he says But it has also brought challenges in introducing employees to new work practices. This includes safety requirements when working with machines for the first time.
Mark Letman joined Pacific Brands 27 years ago and has worked in logistics, freight management, manufacturing and management roles. He started working in safety12 years ago, after his interest in the field was stirred by his experience as a member of the site’s emergency response team.
Presentation available later this year
Poorly designed work is unsafe work. Many times simple but important aspects are overlooked in the project planning stage, setting the scene for future problems. Someone dedicated to spreading this message is David Trembearth, Safety Business Partner, People and Product Safety, Coles, who will speak to the Central Safety Group on Tuesday 13 June. David will talk about how safety in design can make a difference, and discuss the key elements of good safety design both from a people management perspective and an organisational perspective. “If safety practitioners are not thinking and practising safety in design they are missing an important safety element in their approach” states David. Putting safety in design at the forefront of project management and at the concept stage is crucial to risk reduction, and David will outline some of the steps in optimising safety when designing and managing a project.
David is a Certified Professional Ergonomist (HFESA) and a Chartered Generalist OHS Professional (SIA) and is Safety Business Partner for Coles providing safety support across all brands nationally. He has a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Human Movement, and Graduate Diplomas in OHS Management, Ergonomics and Teaching. A key driver in his role at Coles is Safety in Design. He has over 30 years of experience in the provision of health and safety advice, including professional/consulting roles in teaching, clinical massage, safety, ergonomics, injury management, and as a WorkSafe inspector. For over 20 years, David has consulted in safety and human factors to small industry, government and large commercial enterprises. He has worked as an expert witness on injury causation, task and product design in common and civil law. He was a Principal Auditor certified by Exemplar Global (formerly RABQSA International) and has conducted safety audits in private and government organisations. He continues to provide sessional teaching at two Melbourne Universities in post graduate courses involving Occupational Ergonomics and Occupational Assessment and Rehabilitation and supervises ergonomic projects to Masters Level.
Presentation now available. Members please login first
The emphasis on psychosocial risk in the workplace is fairly new in the area of health, safety and wellbeing. Although there has been a huge amount of research on it globally and locally, there is limited understanding on how to assess and manage it.
The subject was discussed by occupational health specialist Dr Natasha Lazareski, who specialises in this area, on Tuesday, 14 February 2017 at the Central Safety Group lunch.
She outlined what psychosocial risk is and how to assess it, and provide insight into some of the latest developments in this field.
Taking action can improve the workplace environment and culture by reducing things such as bullying, conflict, complaints, absenteeism, poor teamwork and mental health issues.
Natasha talked about some of the most powerful and effective things organisations can do to control the impact of work-related stress and improve the mental wellbeing of their employees
Dr Natasha Lazareski is Managing Director of Psyflex, which provides expertise in workplace mental health and wellbeing.
She has been Health and Wellbeing Manager for a number of organisations including National Australia Bank and Ambulance Victoria. She has also worked as a medical officer for personal injury insurance and was National Manager of CGU Workers Compensation Injury Management Services.
Through Psyflex Natasha now develops programs for businesses in a range of industries as well as government organisations, schools, and health and emergency services.
View more of our presentations from previous years, in our Presentation Archives.
