1. White Card Update: Site Safety Management – Whose
Responsibility is it?
With the large number of safety incidents that occur on construction sites in Oz each year, the
question often arises whose fault was it?
Whose responsibility is it to maintain a safe construction site?
Well according to the law, EMPLOYERS have a duty to provide and maintain a safe working
environment which is without risks to the workers and their health as much as possible.
Workplace Health and Safety legislation also outlines duties that employers must comply with
as part of their general duty. Part of the duties of employers includes:
1. Provision and maintenance of plant and equipment and providing systems of work that do not
place the workers at unreasonable and avoidable risk. This safe system of work should not
present a health risk to workers on site.
2. Another duty is to make arrangements for the safe use, handling and storage or transport of
plant or substances including hazardous materials.
3. Employers also have a responsibility to keep the workplace in a safe condition and provide
the necessary facilities for workers welfare, such as ablution and first aid facilities.
4. A duty that employers often seem to ignore, is providing workers with information, instruction,
training or supervision that is necessary for them to work safely and without risks to their health.
This is an extremely important requirement and employers must ensure their workers receive
site specific as well general construction induction training. It is also important to provide
adequate supervision as construction activities can be very dangerous and employers will be
held liable if incidents occur due to lack of supervision or training.
5. Employers must also monitor the conditions at workplaces under their management and
control.
6. Consulting workers on matters of safety is not only useful but smart. As far as is reasonably
practicable employers must consult with their workers who are directly affected by certain health
and safety matters.
Employers who try to escape their duties by drawing up contracts that relinquish their
responsibilities will still be held liable for safety breaches on the sites. An employer’s legal
duties cannot be removed or limited through contractual arrangements with other employers,
workers or contractors.
For example, if a principal contractor (PC) has a supervisor on-site other employers
(contractors) must still supervise their workers to ensure their work is being done safely.
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2. Site safety planning should be managed and coordinated by the PC and should involve all
employers. Each employer should plan how to safely do the work activities over which they
have control.
In order to maintain a safe site, an overall management system needs to be implemented to
manage and control risks that may arise from the particular work being done.
A safety system should include processes for: managing the health and safety of contractors
and sub-contractors, identifying people with OHS responsibilities, developing and managing
consultation procedures for health and safety issues, identifying hazards and control risks,
developing rules for site safety, monitoring site activities and enforcement of safety rules,
establishing site amenities and implement regular maintenance, developing site specific
induction for workers, controlling access onto the site by ensuring only trained and competent
workers are allowed to work on-site. This safe system also entails ensuring all plant, machinery
and equipment are safe for operation and are safely used including developing traffic
management plans and cordoning off zones for specific machinery and making sure these
areas are barricaded with appropriate signage erected.
Another important responsibility in site management is developing emergency response plans
for emergency situations. Each employer on-site needs to effectively manage the safety of their
workers, mobile plant and equipment. It is not just the responsibility of the sites owner or host
employer.
Responsibilities including making sure safe work method statements (SWMS) are developed for
all high risk construction work, workers are competent or are directly supervised by competent
workers and the health and conditions of workers are monitored.
Powered plant needs to be mechanically sound to be used on site and documentation
confirming this needs to be available.
A labour provider also has a part to play, in ensuring that workers have completed mandatory
construction industry induction training, have completed the provider’s own safety induction,
are qualified to undertake the tasks required and are physically able to undertake the required
tasks.
The host employer must provide suitable amentities on site and make sure all workers are
trained on the sites safety procedures They should also provide the necessary personal
protective equipment (PPE) and protective clothing for the tasks to be done free of charge to
workers.
Posted by Steven Asnicar
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3. http://www.whitecardonline.com.au/blog/my-category/white-card-update-site-safety-managemen
t-whose-responsibility-is-it/
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