Victorian Trades Hall Council. The voice of Victorian workers since 1856.Victorian Trades Hall Council. The voice of Victorian workers since 1856.

Unions demand federal government act against major safety hazards

Wednesday 14 March 2007

The Victorian union movement is aghast at the prospect of two major hazard sites being without appropriate OHS regulation from midnight tonight.
 
The Australian Defence Industry sites, located at Point Wilson and Mangalore, near the communities of Little River and Seymour respectively, have until now been covered by Victoria’s comprehensive Major Hazard Facilities regulations.
 
“However, when these sites transfer to the Comcare OHS scheme tomorrow, they will not be regulated, as the Howard government has not made any regulations covering such Major Hazard Facilities,” said Brian Boyd, Secretary Victorian Trades Hall Council today.
 
“The Howard Federal Government doesn’t seem to care about workers or the community, with the new Comcare laws allowing companies to move away from our state OHS system to a federal system that lacks specific hazard facility protections,” added Mr Boyd.
 
The VTHC pointed out that Comcare has given undertakings in the past that it will appoint more Safety Inspectors and has also promised to create Major Hazard Facility regulations, but has failed to do both these things. “Comcare by definition is incapable of making workplaces safe in Victoria,” said Mr Boyd.
 
“We call on ADI to lobby the federal government to sign up to the Australian Workplace Safety Agreement, developed by the State government’s last year. This Agreement is better safety insurance for workers and the community than what John Howard is offering. We call on Sophie Mirrabella, member for Indi, in particular, to stand up against John Howard and stand up for the safety of her constituents.”
 
Victoria’s Major Hazard Facility regulations were a key recommendation arising from the Royal Commission into the 1998 Esso Longford explosion and are considered a benchmark internationally on major hazard regulations.
 
Media enquiries:
Phone: 03 9662 3511
Fax: 03 9663 2127
Email: info@vthc.org.au
Trades Hall, 54 Victoria Street, Carlton South 3053

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