SAFETYFORCE NEWS

1. SAFETYFORCE NEWS • Introduction • Welcome to July’s edition of Fusion Workforce’s Safetyforce Newsletter. • Again a big thank you to everyone who has passed on their feedback and suggestions for future newsletters. Any photos would also be great! • Don’t forget Fusion SafetyForce can assist with all of your OH&S and Workcover issues such as: • OH&S Management system audits • Policy and procedure development • Workcover claims/issues assistance • Overall workplace safety assessments • Specific risk assessments • Standard Operating Procedure development • Developing your Induction procedure • And any other OH&S issues you may have • Contact David Scherer on 9767 2999 or e-mail davids@fusionworkforce.com.au Unguarded machinery leads to fatality in Tullamarine A man has died in hospital two weeks after his clothes were caught in an operating lathe at Tullamarine. The man was working at a plastics manufacturing factory on 4 June when his coat was caught by the lathe and he was dragged in. WorkSafe is investigating the death of the 60yo man from Delahey who was the 14th Victorian to die in traumatic circumstances at work since 1 January. WorkSafe’s Executive Director, John Merritt, said the fatality was the second this year involving unguarded equipment and one of a number of incidents where people have suffered injuries. “Incidents like this devastate families, workmates and businesses yet so many ignore the known and clearly visible risks in their workplaces.” The incident that precipitated this death came just a week after another company and its manager were prosecuted, convicted and fined in the County Court after a similar matter several years ago. “If employers and workers do not protect their people and their businesses, they must accept the consequences. For the individual and everyone associated with the incident they can be truly horrific.” “The outcomes are not what you see on TV and it’s not clever special effects. It is real-life horror that with some thought, planning and discussion can easily be avoided often with material that’s on site or at little cost. It’s not enough to rely on something being ‘industry practice’ when that practice is dangerous. It’s not good enough to rely on the fact that someone has been trained or are very experienced; and it’s certainly not good enough for you to do nothing.” “The deaths and high profile incidents are just the tip of the iceberg. Invariably they involve people doing routine work, but the less prominent injuries caused by poor manual handling practices, slips trips and falls also have an immense community and personal costs.” “Workplace injuries cost the community hundreds of millions of dollars every year in treatment and rehabilitation costs. Prevention of deaths and injuries is rewarded by a happier and more stable workforce and lower business costs.” “What has gone wrong here”? The fact that the start button has been jammed in the “ON” position with the use of a piece of wire indicates that something has gone wrong with either the button or the wiring. One can only assume that if the operator pushes the emergency stop button, without removing the piece of wire first, when the emergency stop button is reset, this piece of equipment will automatically restart. Safety controls are on machinery for a reason and must not be circumvented. If a control is not working properly, the plant must be removed from service until it is repaired. Issue 3 July 2009

2. SAFETYFORCE NEWS Tractor driver lucky to be alive A 21-year-old tractor driver has flipped a tractor without rollover protection and survived, but WorkSafe has warned farmers and other tractor users that the outcome could have been much different. WorkSafe’s Executive Director, John Merritt, said relying on good luck and skill was not a good safety strategy and that if rollover protection was not fitted to tractors, the incident should be taken as a warning.  “The evidence is clear - rollover protection saves lives, particularly when seatbelts are fitted and worn,” Mr Merritt said. The tractor operator was dragging a 10m long log in the Barmah State Forest when the tractor tipped backwards. The driver was trapped until Country Fire Authority volunteers were able to jack up the machine so he could be removed. “When people are seriously hurt or killed, even with the presence of ROPS, it is often because they are trying to jump clear because they’re not wearing a seatbelt or other form of restraint and they are hit by the machine. Tractor rollover protection has been compulsory for many years, yet WorkSafe inspectors regularly find older tractors without it. “People have had more than a decade to fit ROPS, but if you haven’t done it before now, this incident is a warning to protect yourself, your workers and your family,” Mr Merritt said. More than 12,000 tractors were fitted with ROPS in the 1997-98 ROPS rebate project. Around 70% of tractors fitted with ROPS during the campaign were up to 38 years old. People buying older tractors should ensure they are fitted with rollover protection when they buy them and not plan to ‘get around to it sometime’. “By then,” Mr Merritt said, “It might be too late. “Safety improvements evolve over time. With safer fold-down ROPS now readily available, there’s no reason why all tractors cannot be fitted with rollover protection.” Crane Safety This mobile crane is holding a machine which weighs approximately 14 tonnes about 300mm off the ground. Wooden blocks, that could have been used to minimise any failure, were within easy reach. Never work under a suspended load, even for short periods or for minor work, as the consequences of crane or rigging failure can be catastrophic. If you need to work on the load either lower it to the ground or support it on packing, such as timber blocks. Preventing injury when operating power presses Worksafe has developed a new safety alert with solutions for preventing injury when operating power presses. Power presses have one of the highest unintended/accidental stroke rates of any industrial machinery and can cause horrific injuries. The alert can be found on the WorkSafe website www.worksafe.vic.gov.au under forms and publications. Issue 3 July 2009

3. SAFETYFORCE NEWS Ensure your fire extinguishers are always in an easily accessible location! What to do when you don’t have enough scaffolding and the bracing is missing? The solution? Well in this case connect the end frames, put two old planks on top, and have someone hold the ladder for you. It would be interesting to see what the ladder-holder would do if something went wrong. And by the way, shouldn’t someone be holding the scaffold, too? Preferably several people! Workplace Fatalities Statistics Safe Work Australia has released statistics on workplace fatalities between July and December 2008. The full report can be viewed at www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au however the table below gives a quick snapshot. It shows that an incredible amount of Australians still lose their lives in workplace accidents. Industry Worker Bystander Total Industry of Worker Agriculture, forestry & fishing 21 0 21 22 Construction 16 2 18 17 Manufacturing 11 0 11 8 Transport & storage 11 6 17 9 Mining 5 0 5 5 Wholesale trade 3 0 3 3 Electricity, gas & water supply 2 0 2 1 Cultural & recreational services 1 2 3 0 Government administration & defence 1 0 1 1 Personal & other services 1 0 1 1 Property & business services 1 0 1 5 Accommodation, cafes & restaurants 0 1 1 0 Finance & insurance 0 1 1 0 Retail trade 0 1 1 0 Health & community services 0 0 0 0 Communication services 0 0 0 0 Private residence 0 0 0 NA Industry unknown 0 2 2 1 Total73158873 Issue 3 July 2009

4. SAFETYFORCE NEWS Investigations prompt reminder on the dangers of working alone Investigations into two work-related deaths last year have prompted WorkSafe (WA) to issue a reminder on the dangers of working alone and the importance of regular communication with isolated workers. In February last year, a self-employed man was working alone servicing machinery on a farm when the machinery fell onto him, trapping him underneath. He had a mobile telephone in his vehicle, which was about ten metres away.  He could not reach the vehicle and had no procedure for regular contact with anyone else.  The man died under the machinery and was not found until several days later. In November, a farm worker was working alone at a workplace that did have a procedure for regular contact with isolated workers but no requirement to communicate with workers at the end of the working day. The worker had spoken to the farm manager at about 2.00pm, and sometime after that, the ATV he was driving rolled over and the man sustained serious head injuries. He had a mobile telephone but was unconscious and unable to use it, and he lay on the ground until a colleague found him the next morning.  He died in hospital the following day. WorkSafe WA Commissioner Nina Lyhne said today that both cases were a stark reminder that contact needed to be maintained with workers who were working alone. “People who are working alone must have an effective means of communication available at all times, especially if they are in isolated areas such as farms,” Ms Lyhne said. “In both these cases, workers did have a means of communication in mobile phones but their injuries prevented them from using them. “This eventuality should also be considered, and a procedure established for regular contact throughout the day as well as at the end of the day. “If these procedures are in place, an alert would be raised if a worker failed to check in at the appointed time and contact could not be established.  The procedure should include the action to be taken if a worker cannot be contacted.” In all situations of workers working alone, an employer is required by law to identify the hazards, assess the risks and minimise the risks, and to have a means of communication in an emergency and a procedure for regular contact. It is also required that employers provide people who work alone with adequate information, instruction and training, as well as supervision, even if it is indirect. Locking out & Tagging Equipment We are not sure what this worker is doing in the hopper of this wood chipper. Is he inspecting or repairing the chipping mechanism, clearing a blockage, or just having a nap? Whatever he’s doing, we hope he has a very good lock and tag-out system in place before he crawled into the hopper. The injuries that could occur if the chipper started-up are horrific. Always remember that powered equipment should be de-energised, and locked and tagged out before you attempt to clear blockages, inspect or service the moving parts. Issue 3 July 2009