OBESITY AND THE WORKPLACE In recent years, the prevalence of obesity has become a significant health issue in developed countries including Australia & the USA. In the US more than one-third of adults have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher and meet the clinical definition of “obese.” Additionally, the American Medical Association …
If we accept the basic incident model that says hazards cause or contribute to incidents, and the outcomes of incidents are variously death/injury/illness/damage/cost, then all outcomes must be after-the-event indicators of something having gone wrong. In that context they are lagging indicators. When an incident occurs but there is no measurable outcome, these tend to …
NEAR MISSES – OR NEAR HITS? ARE THEY WORTH INVESTIGATING? Read More »
5 Ways To Stretch It Out At Your Desk If you spend most of the workweek sitting, these fast and easy desk stretches are the perfect way to add some fit to your day. It’s no secret, sitting at a desk all day is tough on your health. That’s why it’s so important to add …
Pre-employment medical assessment of job applicants has always been a controversial subject, both from a scientific perspective and because of the risk of unfair discrimination. So is ‘discriminating’ against employing someone on the grounds of pre-existing disability legal (and/or ethical)? Well – yes and no! In a Queensland case a number of years ago (Cambey …
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYMENT, DISABILITIES AND OHS Read More »
Health and Safety Duties The terms of Occupational and/or Work Health and Safety (OHS/WHS) legislation in Australia are such that the duty of the employer (or the Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking – PCBU) has a duty of care – so far as is reasonably practicable – to secure the safety of an employee/worker. This means all workers, …
In most developed countries, the number of workers over age 55 will increase by nearly 40 percent, and the number of workers over age 65 will almost double over the next 10 years. (BLS, Monthly Labor Review, November 2007). These estimates reflect a long-term trend that began in the 1970s and continues today, a result of …
OHS AND THE OLDER WORKER: What’s Age Got To Do With It? Read More »
A national survey of 30 of Australia’s top companies (including car makers, insurance offices, oil refineries and computer marketers) found that: … the majority of middle level managers oppose work practices that would improve quality. While senior management is keen to improve quality, middle management often resents having to bear most of the burden of …
Productivity and Quality – The “Two-Sided Triangle” Read More »
The Somebody Else’s Problem field (SEP field) is a fictional technology from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy “5-part trilogy” by Douglas Adams. It is a cheaper and more practical alternative to an invisibility field. Simply put, an SEP field is an energy field similar to an invisibility field. When somebody, or something, is surrounded by a SEP field, the …
Common Sense is Non-Sense The trouble with common sense is that it is never common and rarely sensible (Confucius) I recently appeared in the Victorian County Court as an expert witness in a civil case. I was disappointed – even saddened – that both the barrister for the plaintiff …
I recently saw a thought-provoking RSA animation clip by Dave Coplin, Chief Envisioning Officer at Microsoft that had me wondering, if he is right, what is going to happen to a field such as work or occupational health and safety? As more and more people move into the “knowledge industry”, just what is work – …