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Thread: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

  1. #16
    Senior Member Bluey's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by BSD View Post
    Nup, you didn't take the time and effort to walk/double check, SWMS, Signs, blah,blah,blah the list goes on.

    I know mate but it is what we are saddled with. Apart from onerous OHS requirements we are saddled with a more and more litigious society. We cannot simply ignore this. If you do so then you do so at your peril. It is fast catching up with us. We have to try stay on top of it and work within the confines as best we can. I personally hate it but if you ignore it it will bite ya arse
    Cheers

    Bluey
    Adelaide Home & Garden Solutions
    http://www.ahgs.com.au


    "Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when everyone is watching."

  2. #17
    Member geoff1969's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    how many people on here wear lace up work boots ????

  3. #18
    Senior Member BeetleJuice's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    The other point of view which i'm making is that a guard was always fitted to the contractors trimmer and that stone flicked up and did damage to another person or created a accident scenario .

    What does that contractor go through to someone who has the guard removed.?

    I see it as this..The various departments come into play doing there job looking at someone being negligent but then how much did a guard prevent the stone flying when on some models the guard only protects a small percentage of a 360 deg throwing circle and would have the guard come into play stopping that stone at all.
    The trimmer was only being used horizontally not tilted to edge

    So what will the outcome be ?
    With guard fitted what ever they decide as a out come
    Without guard fitted what ever they decide as a out come and ad a penalty for it not being fitted $600

    I have a contact in OH&S i will try and get a hold of him this week in answering this guard question

    Here is a trimmer i own,have a look at the guard and tell me how it's meant to stop any stones flying at passersby
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lq3u6cs_g3U

  4. #19

    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by Bluey View Post
    I know mate but it is what we are saddled with. Apart from onerous OHS requirements we are saddled with a more and more litigious society. We cannot simply ignore this. If you do so then you do so at your peril. It is fast catching up with us. We have to try stay on top of it and work within the confines as best we can. I personally hate it but if you ignore it it will bite ya arse
    Ultimately its you who has to make the choice. Many use w/snippers without guards and never have a problem. It's when/if you do have a problem that you will struggle to get the authorities on side.
    I would think they would check to see what other things you don't do regarding your Oh&s.
    It becomes a lot easier when you learn to embrace all the positives with using the guard etc. Either that or just don't worry about it until a problem arises then start "fighting fires"
    Try tell the inspector that you want to do straight edges more easy and he will ask why you don't use a dedicated edging machine.

  5. #20

    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by geoff1969 View Post
    how many people on here wear lace up work boots ????
    Have for the last 5 or so years. The wife has also complained for the last 5 years.
    Not as easy removing them so often don't come off soon enough

  6. #21
    Senior Member Bluey's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by geoff1969 View Post
    how many people on here wear lace up work boots ????
    I do. Always have
    Cheers

    Bluey
    Adelaide Home & Garden Solutions
    http://www.ahgs.com.au


    "Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when everyone is watching."

  7. #22
    Senior Member Bluey's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by BeetleJuice View Post
    The other point of view which i'm making is that a guard was always fitted to the contractors trimmer and that stone flicked up and did damage to another person or created a accident scenario .

    What does that contractor go through to someone who has the guard removed.?

    I see it as this..The various departments come into play doing there job looking at someone being negligent but then how much did a guard prevent the stone flying when on some models the guard only protects a small percentage of a 360 deg throwing circle and would have the guard come into play stopping that stone at all.
    The trimmer was only being used horizontally not tilted to edge

    So what will the outcome be ?
    With guard fitted what ever they decide as a out come
    Without guard fitted what ever they decide as a out come and ad a penalty for it not being fitted $600

    I have a contact in OH&S i will try and get a hold of him this week in answering this guard question

    Here is a trimmer i own,have a look at the guard and tell me how it's meant to stop any stones flying at passersby
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lq3u6cs_g3U
    The very first thing they will look at in any investigation is what safety precautions the operator had in place to try stop an accident of this nature. They will be looking at what the identified risks were and what you did to negate those risks. With operating a whippy it is reasonable to assume that there is a risk of flying objects becoming a danger to other people. Steps you take to lessen it would be to have an adequate guard fitted to the machine and operate in a manner so that the chance of object getting thrown is minimal and if it does it is not in the direction of bystanders. Things like stopping the work if people walk by, warning signs in high traffic areas and not performing the work with large groups of bystanders would all come into play.

    Having a guard in some scenarios may not affect the outcome but I am sure if they checked and found one missing they would look at you a whole lot closer because it shows that you took some deliberate action to remove a safety device. If you do drop someone with a flying rock from a whippy with no guard you cannot argue that the guard was ineffective and it really wasn't your fault because you were under the impression the guard would stop a rock can you.

    With your whippy they may say if you knew that the guard was ineffective why didn't you replace it with one that was. The whole thing about OHS is identifying the risk and putting in place actions and procedures that lessen or negate them. I dont hold my whippy the way most blokes do up near their head when doing vertical edges. I hold it down low and upside down and stand back from the job. It does vertical edges perfectly and I can see where the line is and the guard is out of the way and works to stop objects throwing back behind the machine
    Cheers

    Bluey
    Adelaide Home & Garden Solutions
    http://www.ahgs.com.au


    "Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when everyone is watching."

  8. #23
    Member geoff1969's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Have for the last 5 or so years. The wife has also complained for the last 5 years.
    Not as easy removing them so often don't come off soon enough

    I do. Always have

    the reason why i asked is i do as well and at the place im working for now = i was informed that due to nature of my job = groundsman lace up boots arnt realy except able as if lace comes undone = trip hazard or could possibly get caught up in machinery ,

  9. #24
    Member Redeye's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by geoff1969 View Post
    the reason why i asked is i do as well and at the place im working for now = i was informed that due to nature of my job = groundsman lace up boots arnt realy except able as if lace comes undone = trip hazard or could possibly get caught up in machinery ,
    wow - that takes stupidity to a whole new level....I've always worn lace-ups, always will




    http://curraronggardening.com/

    "All sin is washed away in the Holy goodness of Beer"
    Book of Redeye, Psalm 69

  10. #25

    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by geoff1969 View Post
    Have for the last 5 or so years. The wife has also complained for the last 5 years.
    Not as easy removing them so often don't come off soon enough

    I do. Always have

    the reason why i asked is i do as well and at the place im working for now = i was informed that due to nature of my job = groundsman lace up boots arnt realy except able as if lace comes undone = trip hazard or could possibly get caught up in machinery ,
    Some people just have sh$$ for brains!!!!

  11. #26
    Senior Member BeetleJuice's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    I had a good conversation with a OH&S guy over 10 mins on the subject trimmer guards
    Going straight to the answer "can we run a trimmer without the guard fitted" - NO

    Removing the guard is altering the manufacturers design which you can't do,penalty in being found negligent in a court for a injury *example someone losing a eye would be around $15,000.00
    Once being found negligent it allows the victim in having lawyers suing you for further damages for recovery .Remember the $15,000.00 is just for having the guard not fitted.

    So what are the steps taken
    First they talk to everyone then look at the area the injury took place then determan the distance between the two and was the operator able to work within a safe area in not injuring anyone,was there a curbside sign stating
    "Caution Lawn Mowing In Progress" yes this sign is meant to be used on every job commercial or domestic properties

    As he stated the nylon line trimmer is designed to throw things away from the area being worked with a guard fitted but you still are responsible for injury if some one is hit because you didn't allow enough distance between the two.
    Conversation continued with various examples in lowering vehicles ,accidents and no insurance cover due to being modified from original manufacturers design

    Guard fitted stone takes out someone's eye your still stuffed if the distance wasn't far enough between the two

    For me i'll continue edging with the stick edger and fit a guard back on my nylon trimmer

  12. #27
    Senior Member Bluey's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    Quote Originally Posted by BeetleJuice View Post
    I had a good conversation with a OH&S guy over 10 mins on the subject trimmer guards
    Going straight to the answer "can we run a trimmer without the guard fitted" - NO

    Removing the guard is altering the manufacturers design which you can't do,penalty in being found negligent in a court for a injury *example someone losing a eye would be around $15,000.00
    Once being found negligent it allows the victim in having lawyers suing you for further damages for recovery .Remember the $15,000.00 is just for having the guard not fitted.

    So what are the steps taken
    First they talk to everyone then look at the area the injury took place then determan the distance between the two and was the operator able to work within a safe area in not injuring anyone,was there a curbside sign stating
    "Caution Lawn Mowing In Progress" yes this sign is meant to be used on every job commercial or domestic properties

    As he stated the nylon line trimmer is designed to throw things away from the area being worked with a guard fitted but you still are responsible for injury if some one is hit because you didn't allow enough distance between the two.
    Conversation continued with various examples in lowering vehicles ,accidents and no insurance cover due to being modified from original manufacturers design

    Guard fitted stone takes out someone's eye your still stuffed if the distance wasn't far enough between the two

    For me i'll continue edging with the stick edger and fit a guard back on my nylon trimmer

    Yep pretty much what I was saying. Although I dont have the signs. May have to fix that. I am always really careful if people are about and always stop work if someone walks by on the footpath.
    Cheers

    Bluey
    Adelaide Home & Garden Solutions
    http://www.ahgs.com.au


    "Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when everyone is watching."

  13. #28
    Member Redeye's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    13516169_1114182225271765_380653427410765588_n.jpg

    ..................................




    http://curraronggardening.com/

    "All sin is washed away in the Holy goodness of Beer"
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  14. #29
    Senior Member AJD Mowing's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    That pretty much sums it up Paul.. Pimple faced kids with books and no common sense trying to tell people with a lifetime of experience how to do things.. Absolute pass the pig money grab with nothing to do with safety, half the time on building sites you get told to fill in the stupid forms and then the site supervisor says two words "Be Careful" and your back at work. All a crock of **** God help us if this industry ends up regulated like that
    AJD Mowing Giving Back Your Life

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  15. #30
    Member Macka's Avatar
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    Default Re: Not willing to work with OH&S guidelines

    If you did a real risk assesement on noise our prolonged noise exposure would be to high.

    We would all be required to work less hours a day.

    they know noise stuffs ears and there is no solution but work less hours in noise and they are not prepared to do that, so they charge more for the workcover levi in niosy jobs to cover the injuries. thats why you can get a hearing test and get a Work cover pay out for the loss as simple as going to the shop.

    Dont worry OHS isnt about stopping injuries. its about Identifiy them and reducing them as much as possiable.

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