Work and Health Safety in the Northern Territory of Australia - Case Study Example

Work and Health Safety Name: Professor: Institution: Course: Date: In the Northern territory of Australia, the work health and safety (National uniform Legislation) act 2011 is in place. The act contains rules relating to work and health safety while providing labor. It is meant to ensure that the work places are conducive for the workers in terms of health and safety. (Department of Justice, 2012) Objectives of the Act The main object of the act is to ensure that there is provision of balanced and nationally consistent framework to guarantee the health and safety of the workers. This ensures that that various organisations regardless of their origin follow the same rules and requirements. This allows are the workers in all organisations or companies in the northern territory to enjoy the same benefits and protection of the act. The act seeks to protect the workers and other people involved in the work place against harm to their health in any manner, their physical and psychological safety as well as their welfare. It is done through the minimisation or elimination of risks pertaining to risks and dangers arising from work. Risks may come from handling or coming into contact with machines or substances in the work place. The substance may cause harm to the workers’ body or health and the machines or tools may inflict physical or bodily harm. The act also advocates for provision of fair and effective representation in the work place. Fair and balanced representation in the work place refers to the consultation, cooperation and even issue resolution in relation to work health and safety. This ensures fair treatment of all individuals regardless of their gender, race or ethnicity. This contributes to a stable working environment as it eliminates biasness while providing an equal platform for all individuals to work on and even compete. The work health and safety act also encourage unions and even employers and organisations to assume the leading role in ensuring the improvements in work health and safety practices. They should also ensure free flow of information which will facilitate the promotion of provision of advice, education, information and even training in relation to their work health and safety. The unions and employers ensure that there is full compliance with the requirements of the act. They should put up appropriate, effective compliance and enforcement measures as per the requirement. The act ensures that there is always appropriate check or scrutiny and review of the actions undertaken by the person exercising powers and performing functions which are provided under the act. The act also has the objectives of maintaining and strengthening the national harmonisation of all laws relating to work health and safety and also maintaining of a consistent national approach to workers health and safety. In elaborating further the subsection (1) (a), a high regard must be made to the workers and other persons. They should be offered the highest level of protection against harm to their health, safety and welfare from hazards and other risks emanating from work or other related factors. This ensures that every worker in an organisation or economy is well taken care of in terms of his or her health and safety. (Workplaceinfo.com.au, 2011) Duties of employers Employers should take a constructive role in ensuring the health and safety standards are up to standard with the act. They also ensure that the laid down procedures are followed to the letter in order to keep accidents at a possible minimal. Employers have a general duty towards employees whereby they must as far as possible provide and uphold a working environment where employees at all are not exposed to danger. Under this it includes providing a safe and conducive environment to perform work, employers to provide adequate information, instruction and training so that employees can fully perform their work safely. The employers should consult and as well cooperate with the safety and health officials where possible or needed pertaining the occupational safety and health at the work place. The employer also has the duty of providing proper requirements. They should provide the workers adequate protective clothing and equipment where it is not possible to avoid hazard. They should also ensure that there is safe use, maintenance, cleaning, transportation and even disposal of harmful substance used in the work place. Employers have the duty of notifying the relevant authorities in case of injuries and diseases. He also has the duty to ensure that there is no any sort of discrimination either directly or indirectly and harassment of an employee. They must ensure that all employees are treated fairly. Also, maintaining an effective anti-discrimination policy can help reduce complaints and legal claims. It also leads to good morale as well as customer relations. The employer is also responsible for the actions of his or her staffs. It is referred to as vicarious liability. It is up to the employer to ensure that the workers are responsible as they perform their day to day work. The employer has the duty to make sure that the means of access to and from the work premises are safe and accessible. This is usually important in the case of emergencies where by the workers in the premises need to exit fast and safely. They also have the duty of maintaining the work place which includes the repairs. (Workplace health and safety explained, 2012) Duties of Employees A worker has the duty of always taking care of their own health and safety. They also have the duty to ensure that their acts or omissions do not in any way affect the health and safety of other people. The worker also has the duty to comply with any reasonable instructions that may be given by the person who is supervising them or in charge. The employee has the duty to understand the nature of operations of the business he or she indulges in. The employee has the duty to use the appropriate resources and processes and reasonably eliminate or reduce risks to the health and safety from work which is assumed to be part of the business. The worker has the duty to ensure that the person in charge has an appropriate means of receiving and considering information regarding incidents potential hazards and risks and also to be in position to respond timely and in a reasonable and safe manner to that information. The employee has the duty to ensure that the person in charge has and implements processes for complying with any duty or obligations of the person in charge under the act. The employee has the duty to report to their employer or whoever is in charge of any work related injuries or any danger or hazards at the work place they themselves cannot handle. (Workplace health and safety explained, 2012) Purpose of consultation, representation and participation and how this is conducted in work place Consultation is an opportunity to provide and receive information and also take part in meaningful or important discussion. At work, if workers’ individual tasks in a way relates with each other’s works, they have to hold consultation concerning the works health and safety. The workers and the employer or whoever is in charge have to come into an agreement of procedures of consultation. Then the consultation will take place in accordance with the agreed procedures. The procedures the workers and employers agree on must in every way be consistent with the section 48. (Department of Justice WHS act, 2011) During the consultation, all important information is shared with the workers and a reasonable opportunity is provided to the workers. An opportunity must be provided to the workers to express their point of view and raise any issue pertaining to the work and health issues relating to the issues they are consulting about. During the consultation, the workers are required to make contribution to the decision making process relating to the matter. Also, the workers’ views are taken into consideration by the person in charge or undertaking. The nature of the consultation should ensure that workers were consulted by the representatives of health and safety. Also, during the consultation, the representatives must be involved. Consultation is required in the matters relating to health and safety. For example, it is required when identifying hazards and checking risks to health and safety from work done work place. It is also done in the process of making decisions about ways or means of eliminating or minimising risk. Also when making decisions relating to inadequacy of premises and facilitate for welfare of workers. Before any change is made which is a way may affect the health, safety or welfare of workers, a proposal is made and then consultation. Consultation is also made when in a bid to make decisions about rules or procedures for consulting with the workers, resolving issues relating to work place, work, health or safety. It is also done when monitoring a workplace conditions and provision of information and training to workers. Lastly, consultation is done when activities outlined by the regulations are carried. Under this act, there exist health and safety representatives who may be elected. Their purposes include representing workers in the work group in matters pertaining to work health and safety. The purpose of representation is to act on behalf of the whole work group. The representatives of who act on behalf of the others monitor measures taken by the person in charge in compliance with the act. They also investigate the complaints from work group members which relate to work health and safety. They also inquire into issues that appear to be risky to the health and safety of workers in the work group. The main purpose of representation is to have a few individuals look into matters relating to work health and safety as well as welfare on behalf of the rest of the work group. (WHS Act, 2011) Role of Human Resource The HR has contributed to the act’s implementation by simply allowing and with holding the rules and requirements of the act. It can do this by enforcing policies which advocate for work health and safety. Under the act, consultation has to be done within the required procedures and when necessary in matters pertaining to work health and safety as well as the workers welfare. The HR therefore has to create awareness among workers to ensure they understand the procedures demanded by the act. The policies that the HR create and implement should not contradict the act. The policies should be based on the act and hence in the process the HR plays the role of implementation of the act. This gives it the duty of ensuring that all policies, procedures, rules and also rights are within the act. The HR also has the role in the process of implementing the occupational health and safety (OHS) and act in the work place. It has the role of providing the work health and safety representatives with the necessary support to perform their duties while on the work place and also provide them with the information they require thus implementing the requirements of the act The Hr has the role of providing adequate resources, facilities and assistance. Assistance may be provided inform of information or awareness to the workers which may assist them to perform their duties. It also has the role of ensuring that all the work health and safety rules and procedures are followed. It is its’ mandate to ensure that the work place is worker’s friendly and their safety and welfare is observed. It has to enforce them in order work safety to prevail and prevent accidents or incidents. The act requires that the premises be of required standards. It is the role and duty of HR to ensure that the workers are protected while at their work place. Premises which are up to standards reduce the chances of risks and accidents occurring. It also has a role of ensuring that the equipment in the premises does not pose any risks or danger to the workers. It has to ascertain that they are of required conditions for the workers safety. Protection equipments like clothing where needed are of good condition to guarantee their safety where they are required. The HR also has the role of ensuring that each and every worker’s right is observed and respected regardless of their gender or race. It has to ensure that each of the workers is treated equally. The act demands that the workers’ rights are not violated in any way. All of the above roles of the HR contribute in one way or another to the implementation of the act. Putting the act in motion in the work place is mandatory in the Northern territory of Australia and all employees have to conform to it. By basing the policies the HR creates and implements on it, it implements the act in the course of the work place activities. Bibliography CCH Australia, 2012, Planning work, Health and Safety, Australia Dunn, E and Chennel, Sue A, 2012, US Master Work Health and Safety Guide, Australia Johnstone, R, Bluff, L and Clayton Alan, 2012, Work Health and Safety Law and policy, 3rd edition, Australia Occupational Health and safety, Viewed on May 5th 2012 www.rms.org.au/assets/314515 Workplace health and safety explained, Viewed on May 5th 2012 Workplaceinfo.com.au, 2011, NT becomes seventh to introduce harmonised WHS laws, Australia Read More