International Workers' Memorial Day

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (15:36): On Monday, I had the honour of lighting a candle at the Pilgrim Uniting Church in Flinders Street as a mark of respect and remembrance for hundreds of Australians who lose their lives every year. With me was the Hon. Kyam Maher, the Hon. Reggie Martin, the Hon. Connie Bonaros, the Hon. Katrine Hildyard, the Hon. Andrea Michaels and the member for Colton, Matt Cowdrey. We came together that morning to commemorate Workers' Memorial Day, held on 28 April to coincide with World Day for Safety and Health at Work to mark the lives lost in the workplace.

The not-for-profit organisation Voice of Industrial Death (VOID) was present to remind us of the loss we endure every year. Rarely has there been a more appropriate acronym than VOID, which gives voice to the unnecessary and avoidable deaths and the unspeakable hole they create in our society. From families to friends and workmates, some of whom have had to live with witnessing the fatal injury, these deaths create a void in so many lives that cannot be filled.

As if around 200 Australians losing their lives every year at work was not horrifying enough, a further 2,000 people die from diseases contracted during their everyday work. Another 125,000 people are seriously injured every year at work, adding economic strain to the personal toll. I have said it here before and I will say it again: most employers do the right thing and provide a safe workplace. Unfortunately, the small percentage of those who cut corners in search of a financial edge often directly cause the death of their workers. Their greed, laziness, apathy and sometimes just ignorance kills the actual people they employ to drive their businesses.

Even changing weather patterns can create life-threatening work health and safety issues. Extreme weather events, UV radiation and increased air pollution are among the issues that need to be addressed more now than in previous decades. Employers have to consider the impact of a changing climate as well as the improved knowledge that we have of the elements when creating their workplace. Whereas a worker would have been unfairly expected to work all day in the blazing sun 50 or 60 years ago we now know better. Consequently, the employer has to do better.

In Australia we are in a better position for workplace safety than many other countries, but that is no comfort to the thousands of people who have been impacted, often shattered, by the direct and indirect workplace deaths. It means little to the widowed partner who has to deal with grief and then often endure ongoing financial hardship or to the children left without a mother or father who often cannot understand why they have been left with this hollowness in their once-normal, secure lives.

We cannot afford to look at the often terrible conditions workers are forced to deal with in other countries and be complacent. We need to keep improving so that not one person gets killed by simply doing their job in Australia. In South Australia this Labor government passed the industrial manslaughter bill, making it a potentially criminal act to provide an unsafe workplace.

The act contains penalties for employers who do not meet the required standards. These include a maximum of 20 years' imprisonment for individuals and an $18 million fine for corporations if they engage in reckless or grossly negligent conduct. Like all laws, this is designed to be a deterrent from doing the wrong thing. We also need to change workplace culture where employers are dedicated to safety and looking after their workers. Whether you go to work in a factory, on the road, a building site, an office, or any worksite, you should expect to come home safely.

Too often, though, in a country as advanced as Australia, we see workers being killed after being crushed under heavy machinery, struck by moving objects, having faulty supports collapse under them or being in poorly marked zones. This has to end now. We need to be vigilant, all of us but particularly employers who should be providing a safe and healthy workplace. We cannot afford the void left by workplace death.