The Victorian Government and WorkSafe Victoria have vowed to strengthen and protect the lives of an employee working in high-risk areas. It’s important that everyone working in any type of profession be safe and get back home to their families after a day of work. There are many jobs around us that have a higher risk – people working with fire, people working on construction sites, traffic wards, window cleaners for high rises and more.
The most recent issue is the height and risks associated with it that will be tackled in 2020. Falls from heights can result in near misses to fatalities. Working at height is serious because many times it can be more than human error that places a part in such incidents and its governments that can put through stringent laws to ensure they don’t happen.
There were a number of incidents with injury from heights occurred in 2019 across Melbourne and the country. To ensure the number of incidents will be reduced in 2020, WorkSafe will implement more stringent consequences for employers and conduct more site inspections.
The work at height risk prevention hierarchy is:
- Avoid work at height if can be avoided
- Use work equipment or another measure to prevent fall where work at height cannot be avoided
- Use work equipment or other measures to minimize the distance and consequences of a fall where the risk of a fall cannot be eliminated
- Ensure all safety material is checked every 3 months to ensure safe use
As Pulis Construction Director Michael Pulis said: “It is every employer’s responsibility to keep their workers safe and at Pulis Constructions we always take care of our workers as best as we can.”
The intention behind this initiative is to encourage more employers who have employees working at heights to ensure safety. Many injuries occur, some employee injuries are taken lightly because employers forget that each injury can have a long-time effect in the life of an individual. WorkSafe would like to encourage all employers who are undertaking work at heights to review and revise their Safe Work Method Statements to ensure falls are prevented.
There are various ways to prevent falls from heights. You need to be educated first and take all the necessary precautions when it comes to high-risk work. As our Director Mr. Pulis said “Firstly you must make sure work is properly planned, supervised and carried out by competent people with the skills, knowledge, and experience to do the job. Employers must also ensure their workers use the right type of equipment for working at heights.”
For more information about working at heights visit the work safe website at www.worksafe.vic.gov.au
Email: contact@ppplumbing.com.au or call us at 03 8390 7759 to schedule an appointment.
