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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-05-12 Daily Xml
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WORKPLACE HEALTH AND SAFETY

Mr RAU (Enfield) (14:33): My question is to the Minister for Industrial Relations. What strategy is the government supporting to help improve the—

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, the deputy leader!

Mr RAU: —occupational, health and safety culture in South Australian workplaces?

The Hon. P. CAICA (Colton—Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development) (14:33): I thank the member for Enfield for his question, and I acknowledge his keen interest in all matters relating to workplace safety. Since 2006, SafeWork SA has been developing and implementing a strategically targeted Industry Improvement Program to help employers reduce the number and cost of work-related injuries that occur in our state.

The program is a key in SafeWork SA's occupational health, safety and welfare injury prevention strategy, and it targets industry sectors and employers who contribute disproportionately to workplace injury and illness. The program is focused toward achieving a reduction in the number and cost of work-related injuries and supports the achievement of South Australia's Strategic Plan targets and the national OH&S strategy.

The Industry Improvement Program involves SafeWork SA working in close collaboration with employers and unions and all partners to the program, and it should be congratulated on the promising outcomes to date. The program includes specific strategies which are targeted to meet the circumstances of small, medium and larger enterprises. Key elements of the program include the provision of information, advice, education and the use of enforcement actions, where necessary, to ensure the achievement of a systematic approach to managing health and safety in our workplace.

The 2007 Medium Size Employer Strategy, which targeted 169 work sites, including residential care facilities, supermarkets, factories and construction sites, is illustrative of what the government hopes can be achieved more broadly. I think this is very telling statistical data. It indicates that in the cohort of 169 medium size employers, there was a 16.2 per cent reduction in all claims in the period July 2006 through to June 2008. The targeted cohort of medium size employers also showed a 21.2 per cent reduction in income maintenance claims and, in the same time frame, the reduction of income maintenance claims of all WorkCover registered employers was 10.5 per cent.

SafeWork SA has also received highly positive feedback from employers who have participated in the Medium Size Employer Strategy, with almost all of the 50 employers participating in the program indicating their satisfaction with the standard of service provided and an overwhelming majority having made changes to their policies and procedures as a result of this strategy.

Mr Bignell interjecting:

The Hon. P. CAICA: It is. Whilst the initial results of this intervention program point towards an improving workplace safety culture in South Australian workplaces, the government remains committed to working in partnership with employers, unions and others to ensure that this trend is achieved and sustained across all workplace sectors. Delivery of each of the five strategies under the program will continue throughout 2009.

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