KEEPING WORK OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM SAFE ls to start another year, As IEU members return to schoo ) managers and reps must Work Health and Safety (WHS hazards in the workplace. return their focus to controlling er for IEU Victoria Tasmania, Emma Morrissey, the WHS Offic issues relating to the safety takes a close look at the WHS outdoors. of employees working largely
2020 – a challenging year In many parts of the country the WHS focus in 2020 was preoccupied with the risks associated with COVID-19. Health and safety reps in workplaces have never been so crucial to the proper representation of workers and a consultation point for employers. In some schools and workplaces, the emergence of COVID-19 made apparent that there was no formally elected health and safety representative and for others it was a steep learning curve of risk assessment and hazard minimisation procedures. There is no fundamental difference between the approach to identifying, assessing and controlling the hazard of COVID-19 and any other workplace hazard, the steps are the same regardless of whether the hazards are mechanical, psychological, chemical, body stressing, gravity or sources of energy. What are the WHS requirements? Persons Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU), known in some states’ legislation simply as ‘employers’, must provide as far as reasonably practicable, work and workplaces without risks to health and safety; including safe plant and structures, safe systems of work, the provision of adequate facilities and training and information to workers to allow them to work safely. PCBUs and employers must have established systems for controlling hazards and risks with effective control measures which are regularly reviewed. With compensation claims for psychosocial injuries – particularly for teachers – increasing, it is all too easy for employers to become complacent about the hazards present in physical and manual handling work. It is vital schools remain vigilant about those hazards which many IEU members are exposed to outside the classroom setting. Safety working outside Around a quarter of Australia’s workforce is employed in jobs that may require working outdoors for at least some of the time. In schools, that includes gardeners, maintenance, transport workers, crossing supervisors, sports coaches, teachers and trade contractors and sub-contractors. There 24 | independent education | issue 1 | Vol 51 | 2021
are risks to safety for these employees through exposure to rain and storms, solar radiation, heat, cold, air pollution and low sunlight. Employers have an obligation to either eliminate exposure to hazards or to minimise the risk of injury through exposure by control measures such as: • working indoors (where possible) • ensuring indoor workspaces are adequately ventilated and temperature controlled • modifying the work rate or providing alternative duties on days of extreme temperature • postponing outside work or rostering that work for mornings and late afternoons • providing access to shelter and shade for breaks • providing personal protective equipment including clothing suitable for extreme temperatures, solar radiation, or air pollution • using automated or remote-controlled equipment instead of manual labour • providing access to drinking water or hot drinks in cold weather • scheduling frequent rests, and • providing education about the signs of exposure to environmental hazards such as heat/cold. Safety regulators in all states and territories have guidance material about working in heat and extreme temperatures and duty holders should have policies and procedures to deal with the risks of working outside. WHS representatives should speak to the workers they represent about the hazards of temperature and weather and carry out risk assessments for their workplace to assist in the negotiation of local policies to control hazards and prevent injury, keeping in mind it is ultimately the responsibility of the PCBU or employer to provide and maintain safe workplaces. WHS reps can seek the assistance of their IEU state and territory office at any stage. It is important not to wait until a particular season to begin these negotiations.
