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    Translawner administrator's Avatar
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    Default Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Work Health and Safety Management plan


    "Peek a Boo"

    Yes well now it will only cost members $290.00 complete for a customised work health and safety plan with certification certificate and optional stickers at a small fee for your trailer etc Members call Dean on 1800501662 or email info@indmowing.com.au No more headaches it will exceed Australian Standard .

    New National whs as of Jan 2103 except for Victoria .However i have been advised that fedreal law overides state laws .So why Vic didnt sign up im not sure .


    WHS IF YOU HAVENT GOT ONE GET ONE

    The operators that have no insurance no WHS plan NO ABN and only working for cash down your tools and stop putting your customers at risk .Your days are numbered .

    Does a Sole Trader, One Man micro business really need a WHS Management System? - Sorry, but yes they do!

    Theres over 1000 pages to the act


    Well, here's the long answer to your important questions. Where to start seems daunting, over whelming for small businesses just trying hard to make an honest living - our job together is to make it as simple, quick and painless as we can for our members.
    The important increases in obligations for those people running businessess are found in Sections 19, 28 & 46 of the WHS Act 2011.

    You might not be fully aware that the ACT, NSW, NT, Qld, SA, Tas and Commonwealth versions of the Model Work Health & Safety Act 2011 (the so called "Harmonised" WHS/OHS legal process) requires each employer to effectively implement a formalised risk management program, through which to identify workplace hazards, assess them and take action to either eliminate or control them. The Victorian OHS Act 2004 is, it is claimed, so similar to the Federal Govenment one drawn up by Julia Guilard when she was Federal Industial Relations Minister that the Victorian Government doesn't want to change to the new Commonwealth Model WHS Act & Regulations and even ignored incentive to "harmonise".

    "harmonise" This is what they actually call it

    These Acts are highly detailed, very complex and imposed serious obligations on you and how you run your business. Even if you don’t really want to know about it - the law assumes that you DO KNOW in detail and the courts will not accept ignorance of this law as an excuse for failing to obey it.


    EVERYBODY is included in the new definition of a Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (P.C.B.U. or pronounced "Peek a Boo"). Directors and business managers of public & private companies, but also Sole Traders and One Man Micro Businesses, even people without a formal business structure & just providing a casual service for cash! Every PCBU is required by this new "harmonised law", which sounds nice and innocent, almost harmless & friendly, to actually know about their increased obligations & increased responsibilities for safety.

    All PCBU's, of any type, have a positive obligation to undertake due diligence to ensure that their organisations or just they themselves are fully compliant with this new law.


    So, you do NEED to know about it and you MUST act now to ensure that your workplace is as safe as possible for everybody in it including the sole operator . And this includes having a proper Safety Management System - even if they don't spell it out what this is. It can be written on paper or in a computer system of some sort but cannot just be in your head from 30 years of working safely without ever having had an accident.


    What the law is really saying is that you MUST be able to prove, if necessarily in a Court of Criminal Jurisdiction before a Judge, that you do have a "system" that always identifies possible risks and mitigates them when "reasonably practicable". So if there is a person injured in your workplace (which is ANYWHERE you work!) without something actually written down (better still dated and signed) like a policy or a safe work method or a list of safety instructions or a job risk assessment (SWMS, SOP, JRS & JRA - FORMS, FORMS FORMS!!!), it is of course, very difficult for you to prove you have tried to fully meet your safety obligations.

    Yes, it is a complete pain and of course it might not actually make you any safer than you are already. And yes, let's face it running a small business is hard enough already. But try to think of the positive financial benefits to you personally rather than just concentrate on yet more of your time being wasted by politicians, Yes, it is truly amazing - but it is THE LAW and an incident at your workplace involving the injury or death of a person can literally ruin your business, and can loose you your house and send you to prison if you keep on ignoring reality and fail to protect yourself.

    All businesses, very large or very small, need an up to date, personalised & comprehensive workplace safety management system to ensure their business fully complies with the legal requirement for best practise safety policies, procedures and processes.

    With a fully compliant, robust workplace safety system it will be easier for you to:



    Win contracts with larger companies including safety conscious retirement villages & body corporates or win government tenders (especially Local Governments who now want to sight your safety manuals & expect your Safety Management System to be at least up to AS4801:2003 standard & will ask lots of questions about your safety policies as part of letting you just tender for their work or to supply them with goods and services). EVEN THE DOMESTIC CLIENTS YOU HAVE TO HAVE A WHS

    Understand and fully comply with the new Work Health & Safety Act and Regulation and of course,(IF YOU HAVE DONE ONE WHS YOURSELVE DOES IT COMPLY WITH THE LAW )

    avoid workplace injuries, prosecution, potentially heavy fines and possible jail terms.


    Specifically:

    Here is a quick summary of your legal obligation to manage safety in your workplace as well as you are able:


    See http://www.workcover.nsw.gov.au/newl...s/default.aspx

    Directors and officers, business owners

    Officers, including company directors, are individuals who have high level obligations for work health and safety.


    These obligations are important as health and safety commitment and leadership from the top levels of the business or undertaking is critical to health and safety outcomes.


    Therefore, officers must ensure the person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU - the new term that includes employers) has arrangements in place to comply with its legal obligations.


    It is an officers duty to exercise due diligence to ensure their business or undertaking fulfils its health and safety obligations under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

    A quick summary of your need for health and safety policies and procedures under the WHS Act 2011.


    Simply - a PCBU (Person Conducting a Business Undertaking) MUST have lawful and reasonable health and safety policies and procedures.


    The primary duty under Section 19 of the WHS Act 2011 clearly requires a safe system of work to be in place. This requires the development of lawful and reasonable safety policies and procedures.


    Under Section 28 workers must, among other things, comply so far as they are reasonably able, within any reasonable instruction that is given by a PCBU, to allow the worker to comply with the WHS Act 2011. Further, they MUST cooperate with any reasonable policy or procedure of the PCBU relating to the health or safety of the workplace that the worker has been notified of.

    Workers have a duty under Section 46 of the WHS Act to, so far as reasonably practicable, consult, cooperate and coordinate activities with the PCBU and officers to ensure safety in the workplace.

    As a result, policies and procedures are a critical part of the WHS Management System and must be drafted so they:

    (The worker is you )

    comply with the WHS Act;

    provide reasonable lawful directions to the workers;

    ensure the workers are instructed in and aware of those policies and procedures;

    ensure workers are competent in carrying out those policies and procedures; and

    ensure workers are appropriately supervised in respect of those policies and procedures.


    Important: A failure to undertake the above will leave the PCBU and its officers open to prosecution. However, if the PCBU complies with this obligation and a worker breaches that obligation, the worker may be liable to prosecution and the PCBU will be justified in taking disciplinary action against the worker.

    Yes, you might get away with it for years & years & years - no wucking forries mate! - but just like Drink Driving or parking in front of a pedestrian crossing or not giving way to bigger vehicles, ignoring moving trains on a railway crossing, speeding or running red lights - you will get caught one day and the penalties are severe and designed to punish you for being stupid.

    So there you go
    Last edited by administrator; 07-03-2013 at 11:02 AM.

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  2. #2
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    For commercial clients and domestic clients you should have these in place .

    Commercial clients have legeslation to make sure any sub contractors coming onto their properties have the following in place and as a sales tool you should also give your domestic clients a copy of each document .Much more proffessional AND WILL SEPERATE YOU FROM contractors that put customers at risk (backyarders) .

    Unfortunatly domestic clients do not realise that they also have to make sure you have a safe work area to work in .They can be sued if you hurt yourselve on their property from something they have caused, most are covered from the house insurance (PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAUSE ).
    IF they are not covered common law will take effect and they will still be liable from my understanding .




    1. Police Check

    2. Safe Work Method Management Plan

    3. Insurance Certificate of Currency Public liability

    4. Workers Compensation (if you have employees )

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    Senior Member djkgrounds's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Due to doing a Diploma of Business, implementing OWHS Policies and Procedures was one of the modules I completed as well as Risk Management. I have implemented my own policies and procedures and also completed a Risk Assessment as well. I believe this is an important part of running a business regardless of what it is.

    Safety is number one. I have seen so many people in this industry not following basic WHS like wearing PPE, or not giving way to pedestrians while mowing or edging. This annoys me greatly as word of mouth is the biggest killer of any business. I like to remain professional and treat everyone around me with respect.

    Big fines are only a step away for some people.
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    Senior Member BSD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Purchased mine today, all I gotta do now is work out how to open the file, Grrrr x 1000. Can they/Chris just post the thing if I pay costs?

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    Senior Member BSD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    STOP PRESS!!...Figured out the way to open the file.
    Quote Originally Posted by BSD View Post
    Purchased mine today, all I gotta do now is work out how to open the file, Grrrr x 1000. Can they/Chris just post the thing if I pay costs?

  6. #6
    Senior Member BSD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Well after looking around the site since April this year, buying stuff, doing things,Insurances,liability, blah, blah.. its costs heaps, but WTF, necessary evils are abound, now to get my ass in gear and doing what I been told to do.

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    Senior Member GardeningSolutions's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Quote Originally Posted by BSD View Post
    Well after looking around the site since April this year, buying stuff, doing things,Insurances,liability, blah, blah.. its costs heaps, but WTF, necessary evils are abound, now to get my ass in gear and doing what I been told to do.
    You have to spend money to make money. You don't do it correctly, it will could cost you big time.

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    Member brodie's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    How does this Management Plan compare to management plans by http://www.safetyculture.com.au/

    I don't have preference over any system its just that we have been talking to this group and from the outside the products look the same but who knows.

    What I do know is their system meets Australian Standards and will allow for quality assurance certification relatively easily does the management system at the top of this post have the same benefit. Also the management plan and SWMS are two different purchases meaning if you by a management system you don't get SWSM documents they are a separate purchase. Would this be the same situation here

  9. #9
    Senior Member BSD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    From what I have recieved the one from our group is the ducks bum, you can copy certain pages for swms etc, but it needs to be read and understood, which I'm in process of absorbing info.
    Quote Originally Posted by brodie View Post
    How does this Management Plan compare to management plans by http://www.safetyculture.com.au/

    I don't have preference over any system its just that we have been talking to this group and from the outside the products look the same but who knows.

    What I do know is their system meets Australian Standards and will allow for quality assurance certification relatively easily does the management system at the top of this post have the same benefit. Also the management plan and SWMS are two different purchases meaning if you by a management system you don't get SWSM documents they are a separate purchase. Would this be the same situation here

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    Senior Member imoww's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Uncle is getting his insurance done.
    But is not sure about the Work Health & Safety management plan.

    I said its as important as insurance is... ( i think)
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    Senior Member djkgrounds's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Quote Originally Posted by brodie View Post
    How does this Management Plan compare to management plans by http://www.safetyculture.com.au/

    I don't have preference over any system its just that we have been talking to this group and from the outside the products look the same but who knows.

    What I do know is their system meets Australian Standards and will allow for quality assurance certification relatively easily does the management system at the top of this post have the same benefit. Also the management plan and SWMS are two different purchases meaning if you by a management system you don't get SWSM documents they are a separate purchase. Would this be the same situation here
    Deans WHSMP system is tailor made to your business needs. With others you are buying a lot of paper that may not ever be needed, and set to a broader range of occupations. This is my thoughts anyways, Dean would be the best to answer the above question.

    http://www.indmowing.com.au/html/Wor...gementPlan.htm
    And yes Deans does exceed Australian Standards
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  12. #12
    Senior Member BSD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Agreed, and I think its good value for money. I think some of the parerwork with chemicles etc can be copied and used in my pest control handling and use of pesticides also.
    Quote Originally Posted by djkgrounds View Post
    Deans WHSMP system is tailor made to your business needs. With others you are buying a lot of paper that may not ever be needed, and set to a broader range of occupations. This is my thoughts anyways, Dean would be the best to answer the above question.

    http://www.indmowing.com.au/html/Wor...gementPlan.htm
    And yes Deans does exceed Australian Standards

  13. #13
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Quote Originally Posted by brodie View Post
    How does this Management Plan compare to management plans by http://www.safetyculture.com.au/

    I don't have preference over any system its just that we have been talking to this group and from the outside the products look the same but who knows.

    What I do know is their system meets Australian Standards and will allow for quality assurance certification relatively easily does the management system at the top of this post have the same benefit. Also the management plan and SWMS are two different purchases meaning if you by a management system you don't get SWSM documents they are a separate purchase. Would this be the same situation here
    You get the complete plan exceeeds the legislation .Yes more than meets Australian Standard CanT be WHS SAFETY PLAN WITHOUT SWSM ETC .

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    Member brodie's Avatar
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    Thanks for the swift reply guys.

    The management plans are certainly better priced with dean. Being a lean maintenance and tree maintenance business certainly takes its toll with things like this while there is some cross over in documentation quite often we find that we are having to buy two separate systems to run one business.

  15. #15
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    Default Re: Work Health and Safety Management plan

    You buy one Customised Management plan (pdf file )and its done nobody has better prices or Plan and exceeds the legislation .You all so recieve the certificate of complience which you can laminate and have with you where ever you go .



    I wouldnt of bothered setting it up otherwise lol

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