National Safe Work Month

The Hon. J.E. HANSON (15:06): My question is for the Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector. Will the minister inform the council about this year's National Safe Work Month?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Deputy Premier, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector, Special Minister of State) (15:06): I would be most pleased to, and I thank the honourable member for his question. Like the person who sits next to him in the chamber, I acknowledge the work that he has done, not just in this parliament but in his working life, making sure that people are safe at work through the union movement.

Each October Australians come together for National Safe Work Month, a chance for employers and workers to renew their commitment to safe and healthy work practices. This year's theme for Safe Work Month is 'Safety: every job, every day' to highlight that no matter the occupation, industry, location or size of the workplace, safety must always come first. The month is split across four main focus areas for the four weeks of the month: identifying hazards, assessing risks, controlling risks and reviewing controls.

South Australia's work health and safety regulator, SafeWork SA, plays a key role in providing advice and education on work health and safety, investigating incidents and enforcing regulations and laws. Throughout the month, SafeWork SA will host a wide range of events across our state, beginning at the Yorke Peninsula Field Day as SafeWork SA advisers will deliver safety presentations.

Some of the highlights include a health and safety representatives (HSR) forum hosted by SafeWork SA in conjunction with SA Unions, the SA Business Chamber and ReturnToWork SA; a series of webinars across a wide range of topics ranging from regulations on crystalline silica substances to reflections on workers' mental health through a work health and safety lens; incident simulators; and mock court situations. The month concludes at the end of this month with the Augusta Zadow Awards, which this year mark their 20^th anniversary, a milestone that I will be happy to inform the council of at a later date.

In addition to these events SafeWork SA is launching a 12-month compliance and education campaign from the start of this month, focused on ensuring farmers understand work health and safety responsibilities. A targeted advertising campaign in regional newspapers and on digital platforms will help build awareness in rural communities. I thank SafeWork SA for the work that they do and encourage everyone who wants to be involved to get involved in Safe Work Month.