Tag: Workplace Health & Safety

NATIONAL SAFE WORK MONTH: WHS IS FOR EVERYONE

Posted on by Nicki Davies

 

National Safe Work Month 2020. Every year Safe Work Australia asks businesses, employers and workers to join this initiative and commit to building safe and healthy workplaces for all Australians.

Disclaimer: The following information is general in nature. It does not take into account your personal situation

WHS IS FOR EVERYONE

Labourpower believes in safety for everyone. Also that best practice WHS helps contribute to our:

  • Overall health and wellbeing, and
  • Improves overall productivity and quality of work
SAFETY IS NEVER AN ACCIDENT

No matter what your job, it is important to look after your health and safety at work.

SAFETY IS IN YOUR HANDS

We all have a role to play in workplace safety. Therefore, it’s important to be aware of the safety procedures. Also to follow the safe work instructions at your work site. This helps ensure the safety of yourself and others. You can put yourself and other people at risk if you fail to:

  • Act in a safe manner at all times
  • Follow all safe work practices agreed for your site
  • Report any safety concerns to your supervisor

IMPORTANT: Safe work practices also mean taking care not to put other people in the workplace at risk.

STAYING HEALTHY AND SAFE AT WORK

Here are some DO’s and DON’Ts to protect your health and safety at work.

DON’Ts 

  • Work when affected by fatigue, sickness or under the influence
  • Over exceed your capabilities
  • Operate any machinery you are not trained or qualified to operate
  • Tamper with equipment or try and fix it

DOs 

  • Firstly, always pay attention to what you’re doing all the time and what is happening around you
  • Also, report anything that looks dangerous
  • Finally, remember to make use of the health and wellbeing resources available to you through the Labourpower Toolbox and Wellness flyers

REMEMBER: If you are ever in doubt, always stop and ask for help. In addition, report any issues to your supervisor immediately.

STAY COVID SAFE

This year’s National Safe Work Month theme is Work Health and Safety through COVID-19. It is a timely reminder to follow Labourpower’s COVID safe work practices at all times

SAFETY GOES 24/7

Labourpower values your health and wellbeing and has an ongoing commitment to safety in the workplace.

We are also proud to partner with Workactive to bring you safety and wellbeing programs throughout the year.

We look forward to bringing you more safety tips as part of our Toolbox Tuesdays.

Look out for our regular Toolbox Tuesday and Wellness Wednesday posts on Facebook, LinkedIn and the Labourpower website.

 

NATIONAL SAFE WORK MONTH 2020

Labourpower is also proud to join National Safe Work Month. It’s part of our commitment to building safe and healthy workplaces for all Australians.

#safeworkmonth #safetytogether

INJURY REPORTING – SAFETY AT WORK

Posted on by Nicki Davies

 

Injury reporting is important. Firstly, so employees receive appropriate treatment and support. Also, to ensure that employers can address any safety issues in the workplace.

Disclaimer: The following information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation

INJURIES MUST BE REPORTED SO THAT YOU CAN BE SUPPORTED

Workplace injuries can range from physical cuts and lacerations to pain from repetitive lifting and manual handling. Labourpower is committed to taking all reported injuries seriously. We will work to ensure that:

  • All injured workers get the support and help needed
  • We review practices to improve workplace health and safety

IMPORTANT: No matter how small the injury may appear, it’s important to report the incident and injury early.

SAFETY IS NO ACCIDENT

Understanding the cause of an injury can help reduce work-related injuries and illnesses. ALL injuries (including those that occur outside the workplace) should be reported even if these injuries seem minor. Reporting an injury helps to:

  • Make sure you receive appropriate treatment and care
  • Ensure any safety issues at work are addressed
  • Prevent any reoccurrence of an incident or injury

IMPORTANT: Always report an injury to your supervisor and Labourpower representative —not a co-worker.

IT’S IMPORTANT TO REPORT ALL INJURIES

Labourpower has resources available no matter where you work. This ranges from general information to qualified medical professionals who can assist with treatment plans as well as preventative care. It’s key for you to:

  • Firstly, know what actions to take if an incident or injury at work involves you
  • Secondly, follow all safety measures and practices in place at the host client
  • In addition, understand the danger of the risks and identified hazards around you
  • Also, pay attention to all safety messages, signs and follow your training

Finally, report ALL injuries and incidents to your supervisor, no matter how small.

REMEMBER: The sooner you report an incident or injury, then the sooner Labourpower can seek treatment for you and provide you with appropriate care. 

SAFETY GOES 24/7

Labourpower values your health and wellbeing and has an ongoing commitment to safety in the workplace.

We are also proud to partner with Workactive to bring you safety and wellbeing programs throughout the year.

We look forward to bringing you more safety tips as part of our Toolbox Tuesdays.

Look out for our regular Toolbox Tuesday and Wellness Wednesday posts on Facebook, LinkedIn and the Labourpower website.

 

NATIONAL SAFE WORK MONTH 2020

Labourpower is also proud to join National Safe Work Month. It’s part of our commitment to building safe and healthy workplaces for all Australians.

#safeworkmonth #safetytogether

NATIONAL SAFE WORK MONTH: HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELLBEING THROUGH COVID-19

Posted on by Nicki Davies

October is National Safe Work Month – a time to commit to improving safety and health in the workplace.

This year’s theme, Work Health and Safety through COVID-19, acknowledges and reflects the wide-reaching impacts of COVID-19 on Australian businesses, employers and workers.

Labourpower National HR Manager Brooke Horbury reflects on the challenges brought about by the pandemic and provides an insight into the initiatives put in place at Labourpower.

TELL US ABOUT SOME OF THE KEY CHALLENGES
FACING LABOURPOWER AS A RESULT OF THE PANDEMIC?

COVID-19 brings unprecedented challenges for everyone and Labourpower is learning and adapting every day. Our first step was to set up a COVID Response team within our HR department, establishing COVID safe protocols in accordance with Federal, State and Territory guidelines, to ensure the health and safety of:

  • Casual staff
  • Internal staff, and the
  • Wider community to slow the spread of infection
HOW ARE YOU HELPING CLIENTS TO MITIGATE RISK?

Many of our clients across the country continue to provide essential services and require people to show up to work during the pandemic.

Labourpower helps clients navigate the challenges of operating in a COVID world. Businesses must prioritise staff safety and wellbeing if they are to be sustainable. We work closely with our clients to ensure stringent protocols that help:

  • Identify risks
  • Minimise spread
  • Support any initiatives/processes they have implemented on-site

Labourpower’s National COVID-19 Safety Plan allows us to be agile and responsive, with employee wellbeing and safety at the centre of everything we do.

HOW ARE YOU SAFELY MANAGING SUSPECTED
OR CONFIRMED CASES OF COVID-19?

As soon as we had our first positive case in the workforce, we knew exactly how to manage the situation to keep our workers safe and limit the spread of COVID-19.

Most importantly, it was reassuring to know that our National COVID-19 Safety plan is effective and works.

Our flexible approach has seen us continually improve and strengthen our processes to create positive outcomes for our staff and clients.

The Labourpower COVID-19 Management team speaks to any employee or client with a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19. They assess each report on a case-by-case basis to determine how best to manage and mitigate any risk.

HOW MANY STAFF MEMBERS HAVE RETURNED TO WORK OVER THIS PERIOD?

As part of our COVID-19 management plan, Labourpower HR requires staff to self-isolate from work if they or anyone in their household:

  • Is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19
  • Has had contact with a suspected or confirmed case, or
  • Has tested positive

Once an employee receives a negative COVID-19 result, we ask them a series of questions to ensure they are fit and well for work.

As soon as we identify that there is no risk for them to return to work, the staff member can go back on the roster.

To date, 1753 employees have been cleared to return to work by the Labourpower COVID-19 Management team.

HOW IMPORTANT IS COMMUNICATION AT THIS TIME?

Certainly communication is key to helping our staff and clients navigate the impacts of COVID-19. For example, keeping our workers up-to-date with:

  • Regular text messages,
  • Toolbox talks and
  • Other communications

As well as regular check-ins with people in isolation is important.

Similarly, we also make regular communication with our clients a priority so that they know that we are standing by them. They have confidence that we are able to continue to deliver a service that supports their business and its needs in a way that ensures the health safety of all employees.

ARE THERE ANY POSITIVE OUTCOMES BROUGHT ON BY THE PANDEMIC?

Every member of our team has been remarkable. We have seen incredible resilience as people:

  • Continue to show up to work
  • Cope with the unpredictable, and
  • Maintain a focus on providing quality outcomes for businesses across all industries

I am proud to be part of a team that has shown such a firm commitment and proactive approach to tackling the challenges of COVID-19. Through openness and transparency we are helping to create a safe work environment for individuals and each client’s business.

 

NATIONAL SAFE WORK MONTH 2020

Labourpower is proud to join National Safe Work Month as part of our commitment to building safe and healthy workplaces for all Australians.

#safeworkmonth #safetytogether

AT LABOURPOWER – SAFETY GOES 24/7

Posted on by Nicki Davies

October each year is Safe Work Australia’s National Safe Work month. It’s a time to commit to building safe and healthy workplaces for Australia.

The 2019 theme of ‘Be a Safety Champion’ highlighted that anyone can be a safety champion in the workplace.

National Safe Work month may be over, but it is vital for organisations to make workplace health and safety a priority all year round. 

We speak to Labourpower’s National Workplace Health and Safety Manager David Chernich about the importance of workplace health and safety (WHS) and why at Labourpower – Safety Goes 24/7.


Why is National Safe Work month important?

National Safe Work month helps raise awareness of workplace health and safety. It gives us an opportunity to highlight Labourpower’s commitment to safety, promote discussion about safety at work and remind everyone of the initiatives we have in place to ensure our team is safe all year round.

Today Labourpower fills over 19,000 casual worker jobs each week with over 970 clients nationally ranging from small independent workplaces to larger well-known brands. Creating a safe and healthy workplace is at the centre of everything we do so that our workers are safe 24/7.

KEEPING OUR WORKERS SAFE AT ALL TIMES

With the variety of industries and workplaces Labourpower supplies to, there is always a risk that injuries may occur in the blink of an eye. Preventing workplace injuries, keeping workers safe at work and getting them back home safely is a priority for Labourpower and this is why our motto is ‘Safety Goes 24/7’.

A safer workforce is a healthier workforce. A healthier workforce is a safer workforce.

 

Why does Labourpower integrate safety with wellness?

Workplace safety and wellness programs have historically operated independently of each other. Today, there is increasing evidence to show that health improvements lead to safety improvements and safety improvements lead to health improvements.

By continuing with our efforts to integrate the activities of health protection and health promotion, Labourpower aims to create a safer, healthier and more productive workforce.

 

How have you supported this year’s National Safe Work theme “Be a Safety Champion”?

This year’s theme aimed to demonstrate that anyone, both employers and workers from any occupation or industry can be a champion for work health and safety.

Everyone can support a safety culture at their workplace and promote best practice work health and safety initiatives.*

At Labourpower, we champion a number of initiatives throughout the month to raise awareness with our teams not only about the risks and hazards in the workplace but how to prevent harm. We also continue with our efforts to integrate health protection and health promotion activities.

Labourpower encourages all staff to strive to Be a Safety Champion at work. If you have any concerns or suggestions to help increase safety in your workplace, speak to your Account Manager or Labourpower WHS.

 

#safety champion #safeworkmonth

 

*Reference: https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/national-safe-work-month/safety-champion-info