Health Safety Representatives as leaders HSR AS LEADERS

Health & Safety Representatives as leaders

HSR AS LEADERS • Leading and influencing workers to improve health and safety culture in the workplace • Vasalia Govender & Renata Musolino

TODAY’S PLAN • How long? up to hour • Will there be a recording? Yes, we will send it to you by tomorrow • What is the agenda? • OHS history and the beginning of the HSR role • Role and powers of the HSR • Examples of HSR leadership • Benefits of HSR involvement in workplace health and safety

WORKPLACE DISASTERS • 1912 - Sinking of the Titanic • 1942 - Honkeiko Colliery Mining Disaster

BEGINNING OF THE HSR ROLE • 1954 - Mines and Quarries Act • 1972 - Roben's report 1972 • 1973 – ACTU Policy • 1983 - Industrial Health Safety Act 1983 • 1985 - OHS ACT

Coming together is a BEGINNING, Keeping together is PROGRESS, Working together is HENRY FORD SUCCESS.

Representing members of the DWG ROLE & POWERS OF A HSR Raising & resolving any OHS issues with their employer Powers to take issues further if necessary

CONSULTATION Duty to Consult: OHS ACT 2004 (s. 35{4&5}) How to consult: OHS Regulations (2017)

HSRS & CONSULTATION • Employers must consult HSRs in a wide range of circumstances, including: • When identifying or assessing hazards or risks • When making decisions about the measures to be taken to control risks • When making decisions about procedures to monitor the health of employees • When proposing changes (that may affect health and safety) to the workplace, the plant, substances, etc or the conduct of the work • These are all situations where consultants may be providing advice to an employer. Consultants should be aware that HSRs have the right to be involved.

OHS CONSULTATION IN VICTORIA EXAMINING THE EXPERIENCES OF HSR(2016) Survey 243 HSRS 10% in the role for more than 10 years 89% were not automatically consulted 41% felt pressured

EXAMPLES: • Fatigue management • Manual handling • Electrical safety/ environmental hazards • PPE

BENEFITS OF HSR INVOLVEMENT A healthy workforce and a safer workplace Better worker engagement and retention Lower absenteeism and Work. Cover costs Productive workforce and increased business performance

Great leaders start of as health & safety representatives

REFERENCES • David Walters, Michael Quinlan, Voice and resistance: Coalminers’ struggles to represent their health and safety interests in Australia and New Zealand 1871– 1925, The Economic and Labour Relations Review, 10. 1177/1035304619877588, (103530461987758), (2019) • Érudit Journals Relations industrielles Volume 71, Number 3, Summer 2016, pp. 391583 Safeguarding Workers : A Study of Health and Safety Representatives in the Queensland Coalmining Industry, 1990 -2013 • https: //www. worksafe. vic. gov. au/importance-health-and-safety-representatives • https: //www. worksafe. vic. gov. au/powers-health-and-safety-representatives • https: //www. ohsrep. org. au/health_and_safety_representatives • https: //www. safeworkaustralia. gov. au/media-centre/health-and-safety-representativesworkers-leaders • The Sinking of the Titanic” https: //en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_RMS_Titanic [Accessed: 22/04/2016] • Honkeiko colliery mining disaster” http: //www. britannica. com/event/Honkeiko-collierymining-disaster [Accessed: 27/04/2016] • https: //ya-webdesign. com/image/department-clipart-liaison/9176. html

ASK RENATA Please send in your occupational health and safety questions to Renata. . https: //www. ohsrep. org. au/ask_renata To contact Vasalia: email vgovender [email protected] com