Work Health Safety Act in the Northern Territory in Australia - Essay Example

Work Health Safety Act in the Northern territory in Australia Contents Introduction 3 Key Objects of the Act 3 Duties of employers and employees under the Act 4 Purpose of consultation, representation and participation and how this is conducted in the workplace 5 Role of HR in relation to the implementation of the OHS and Act in the workplace 5 Conclusion 6 References 7 Introduction The Commonwealth in collaboration with the Northern Territory of Australia and also with some other territories are committed towards improving the overall work atmosphere and to give a safety and healthy workplace to the workers in Australia. The model legislation that was formed in Australia had the main objective to sync workplace health and safety with the increased productivity of the workers. The other term for this legislation is WHS or Work Health and Safety Act and was incorporated in the year 2009. The northern territory Work Safe Act was finally introduced in the year 2011and it works for the benefit of the workers so that they get a safe atmosphere in order to work. The Work Health and Safety Act can only be effectively maintained in a workplace with coordination from HR personnel and also incorporating this act into business operations. The NT regulators of this act are responsible for the overall regulation of the key objectives of this act in every territory or region. Key Objects of the Act The Work Health and Safety Act in the Northern Territory in Australia have the major responsibility of regulating all the territories in this region. The main objective of this act is ensure safety and health of workers at the workplace, electrical safety, to provide protection to the workers against dangerous goods, and focuses on worker’s compensation and rehabilitation. The WHS act was majorly formulated so that the workers can be given a workplace atmosphere that is not only full of harmony but takes care about smaller aspects related to the workers (Mayhew, 2007, pp. 67-68). The objectives can be further extended such as the first main objective of this act is to secure the welfare, health and safety factor of all the individuals who are a part of an organization. It prohibits any organization from over exploiting workers or rather does not take active measures towards the health and safety of the workers (Loewenson, 2001, pp. 94-95). The second objective of this act is to protect the lives of those workers who can be subjected to various risky activities that can take place in the workplace. The other objective of this Act is to control the use, acquiring and also keeping stocks of flammable or highly explosive substances in the workplace. This objective mainly takes into consideration the safety of the workers that should be treated as one of the priorities by an organization (Sherriff and Tooma, 2010, pp. 72-73). The next objective of the legislative act is to provide protective facilities and guidelines and also to have adequate measures to record accident and even to ensure proper facility for injuries and incidents. This Act also takes into consideration the controlling measures of emissions that should be considered by an organization so that offensive and noxious substances are not discharged into the atmosphere by such enterprises. Thus all the objectives of the Act are aligned towards the welfare of the workers so that are not faced to any kind of injustice in the workplace. Duties of employers and employees under the Act There are certain duties that both the employer and employee of an organization possess in relation to the Work Health and Safety Act. The responsibility of employers as per this act is to manage health and safety at the workplace. It is the major duty of the employer to take care of welfare and other safety related issues of their employees and also other members of the team who are somewhere affected by the business operations of the organization. As per this law the main duties of the employers is to assess risk in the workplace that can affect the health or safety of the workers. Employers should involve the employees regarding the risks that are prevalent in the organization and also train them on how to deal with such risks in the workplace (Alibekova and Campbell, 2007, pp. 101-102). The other duty of the employer is to consult the employees on various issues on health and safety. This is done either directly or through an elected safety representative who is appointed by the workforce or the trade union. As per the law the employers have a legal duty in making the employees aware of all risks and the required measures they are taking to safeguard the employees against such risks. Though the duties of the employers are major as per this act but there are even some significant duties that the employees needs to execute (Precision Group, 2000, pp. 113-114). The first duty that an employee has is to talk to their employer so that they can discuss about various health and safety related issues and get a copy of company statement that states the active measures that are taken by the company to safeguard employees. The next duty of the employee is to be alert and have a continuous check on any situation that can result into an accident. This would even comprise of being aware of other co-workers and their activities which can lead to an accident that can impact others and if the other co-workers continue to act in such reckless fashion then it should be brought into notice of the employer (Palmer, 2000, pp. 55-56). The other duties of the employee are not to engage in any risky situations and to use the best mechanism to handle such risks or to conduct any such risky activities that could harm them as well as other group members, to ensure that they make use of machinery, substances and tools in a proper fashion, and report any such defects in equipments or workplace to the employer that may endanger health and safety. Purpose of consultation, representation and participation and how this is conducted in the workplace The consultation, representation and participation have a very high significance in the workplace as it helps in incorporating the law at each and every level of an organization. The main purpose of these three aspects is to ensure that health and safety measures are properly implemented in the system. The responsibility of regulating the WHS Act is not the primary concern of employers but also needs to be well addressed by the employees so that the regulatory measures are affective throughout the system. The main purpose of consultation is to analyze the issues that are faced by the employees in relation to health and safety issues in the workplace (Creighton and Rozen, 2007, pp. 93-94). The consultation purpose is to work in coordination with the employees so that the proper measurements are incorporated by the employer to address the major issues of the employees. The main purpose of representation in this Act is to spread awareness amongst the employee base on the various risk issues in the organization and how it is been taken care of by employer and the main purpose of presentation is reflect the main objectives of the law to the employee and what they need to do so as to secure health and safety in the workplace (Gunningham, 2007, pp. 76-77). The ways of conducting all these aspects is majorly through the higher authority of the organization or a well structured health and safety organization that takes care of all such issues, and the consultation process is carried forth by an elected personnel or safety executive from trade union or the workforce who highlights the various health and safety issues to the employers and enters into discussion with the management in order to resolve such issues. Role of HR in relation to the implementation of the OHS and Act in the workplace The role of HR is very significant in the implementation of Act and OHS in the workplace. The Act that is related to employee safety is a major concern of HR personnel as it is concerned with the employees in the workplace. The major role of HR is to set the guidelines and rules that ensure that the workplace is safe and healthy for the workforce. HR performs the necessary evaluation of the risks that exist in the workplace and prepare the company safety statement so as to outline the measures that the company is taking towards protecting the employees from such risks (Bohle and Quinlan, 2000, pp. 114-115). The HR even acts a platform through which employees can share their issues in relation to their welfare with the management so that the higher authority to safeguard employees and also to be aligned with OHS and the Act. The other important role in the implementation process that the HR of an organization has is to train the employees in the most efficient way so that they can handle any such risks that can cause serious impact on the health of the workforce (Grammeno, 2009, pp. 103-104). Conclusion The Northern Territory in Australia has collaborated with Commonwealth so as to form some model legislation that can protect the employees in the workplace and convert the work environment into safe and healthy atmosphere. This Act is incorporated in all of the organizations in Australia and also in the nearby territories. This Act takes into account that the Australian workers are not exploited by the employers and they are not subjected to any risky situation in the workplace that can have an impact on their health. The Act even states that proper implementation of this law in the workplace requires effective participation of the employer as well as employee. There are certain duties that employees needs to perform so that their safety is not at risk. This Act even incorporates control over various factors and even handling of flammable substances in the workplace that can be harmful for the workforce. References Alibekova, A., and Campbell, D. 2007. Employment Law. UK: Kluwer Law International Bohle, P., and Quinlan, M. 2000. Managing Occupational Health and Safety: A Multidisciplinary Approach. Malaysia : Macmillan Education Creighton, B., and Rozen, P. 2007. Occupational Health and Safety Law. Sydney: Federation Press Grammeno, G. 2009. Planning Occupational Health and Safety. Australia: CCH Australia Limited Gunningham, N. 2007. Mine Safety: Law Regulation Policy. Sydney: Federation Press Loewenson, R. 2001. Occupational health and safety legislation. USA : F. Ebert Stiftung Mayhew, C. 2007. Australian Master OHS and Environment Guide. Australia: CCH Australia Limited Palmer, G. 2000. Employment Relations: Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management in Australia. Australia: Macmillan Education AU Precision Group. 2000. Ensure a Safe Workplace. Australia: Precision Group Sherriff, B.N., and Tooma, M. 2010. Understanding the Model Work Health and Safety Act. Australia: CCH Australia Limited Read More