Posts: Duty of Care

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Duty of Care

Ausgrid to pay $600,000 for fatal electricity incident which occurred 9 weeks after similar incident

The NSW District Court has heard how following an incident involving the low voltage pole changeovers which caused significant injuries to a worker, a similar incident occurred about nine weeks later, this time causing a fatality.

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Court fines PCBU $60,000 for failing to re-assess the risks associated with changing site conditions

Set and forget

Persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs) have a positive obligation to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers and others.

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Workplace Relations Review

Cases and Legislation September 2019

Employers' duty of care for employees, duty of care and contributory negligence, workers compensation and working from home, multiple roles and overtime, general protections and reason for adverse action.

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FWC refers employer to FWO over sham contracting

Fool me once, sham on you

The rapid rise of concepts such as the gig economy has seen a significant shift in our understanding of the differences between independent contractors and employees.

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How a region banded together to improve employment standards

Group Effort

No employer operates in a silo – all employers operate in complex systems of interrelated stakeholders including employees, customers, other businesses, and regulators who enforce the laws that apply to the employer and their business.

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Restraints of Trade

Restraints of Trade

In the lead up to our webinar titled “Hold the Line! – Restraints & Employment Contracts” on 28 August 2019, we wanted to share some of the main discussion points and prominent cases on the topic of restraints of trade.

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Worker convicted for bullying behaviour

Court Bags a Bully

Work health and safety legislation aims to provide protections for workers and other persons by eliminating or minimising risks to health and safety.

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Workplace Relations Review

Cases and Legislation July 2019

Workplace investigations and the disciplinary process, labour hire company convicted, review of Miscellaneous Award 2010, recruitment, criminal records and discrimination, sports Law - player suspensions and stand downs

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Negligent host employer ordered to pay damages to injured labour-hire worker

Care and control

A recent decision from the District Court of New South Wales has highlighted the importance of a host employer’s duty of care to any labour-hire worker it engages where the work directions and conditions are within the host employer’s knowledge and control.

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Court rejects employee’s proposed adjustments to workplace

Put it in writing

Australia’s anti-discrimination legislation imposes positive obligations on employers to make reasonable adjustments in the workplace to accommodate an employee’s disability, unless doing so would cause unjustifiable hardship to the business.

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The importance of documented and accessible safe systems of work

Is it safe???

A workplace incident involving a worker struck by a forklift has demonstrated the importance of having documented systems of work and induction processes in place that are accessible for all workers.

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College accepts responsibility for death of football player from heatstroke

WHS and Sport

The tragic death of a 19 year old college football player in the USA serves as a reminder to sporting organisations at all levels about the duty of care owed to their players.

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Coles loses appeal of $1 million claim for safety step injury

And a step to the right

ACT Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by Coles Supermarkets and confirmed an earlier decision in which a Coles employee was awarded more than $1 million in damages.

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Work health safety prosecution update

Don’t be so reckless

Codes set out the minimum standards to meet work health and safety requirements and are admissible in WHS prosecutions. Guides and Australian Standards will also be relevant safety material that employers should consider when creating safety documentation.

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Investigation letters issued to ill employee not a breach of duty of care

Appeal dismissed

In Govier v UnitingCare Community [2017] QCA 12, an employee’s appeal was dismissed, confirming an earlier decision that her employer did not breach any duty of care when it issued letters to the employee in the course of an investigation, resulting in aggravation of her psychiatric conditions.

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