 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
FEDERAL LAWS LET EMPLOYERS GET AWAY WITH MURDER 28 April 2006 SA Unions fears a recent spate of workplace deaths and serious injuries will become the norm under the federal government's controversial workplace laws. Today, April 28, is the International Commemoration Day for Dead and Injured Workers. It is also the day on which maintenance worker Graham Mehaffey is laid to rest, after being killed in an industrial accident at St Paul's function centre a week ago. SA Unions is holding a commemoration ceremony at its offices at 10.00 am. It will include an address by Sandie Griffin about the wider impact of workplace deaths on families, friends and colleagues. Ms Griffin is an experienced grief counsellor who specialises in workplace incidents. The ceremony is a gesture of respect for the 16 workers who have lost their lives in South Australian workplaces between 1 April 2005 and 24 April 2006. We will also pay our respects to those not included in the official statistics, such as people who die from asbestos exposure and those killed travelling to or from work. Secretary Janet Giles says occupational health and safety is set to be the next victim of the new federal laws. "The federal laws make it harder for unions to access worksites and monitor safety standards. It means employers can pressure workers into unsafe practices and unions are prevented from standing up for them." "We believe that the new laws effectively make the federal government an accessory to manslaughter", Ms Giles says. "Adding further insult to injury, our battle to achieve tough state based industrial manslaughter laws has been quashed by the federal laws." "It means that unscrupulous employers will continue to get away with causing workplace deaths and injuries with little fear of retribution. People face tougher fines for drink driving - where they may potentially cause a death - than do employers whose workers are actually killed", Ms Giles says. Worker Death and Injury Fact Sheet Australia's workplace death rate is worse than that of Great Britain, Japan, Norway, the Czech Republic, USA, New Zealand, Poland, Slovenia and Canada. We have the same number of deaths per 100,000 workers as Romania. IN AUSTRALIA : There are 380 new workers compensation claims every day. About 300 workers are killed in workplace accidents each year and another 2,000 die from occupational diseases such as asbestos-related cancer. IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA : In 2004, 19 SA workers died while they were at work. Already this financial year 13 have died. 16 people lost their lives between last April and the present. This does not take into account those who have died due to exposure of asbestos. We now have the highest proportion of mesothelioma (asbestos related disease) per head of population in the western world. Studies show that unionised workplaces are safer workplaces. Unions continue to fight to prevent workplace deaths and injuries and for proper compensation for those who have survived. Despite the challenges presented by the new federal work laws, we are lobby for -
|
