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

Workplace fatalities increase under harsh new work laws

Commemorative Service at Trades Hall, Friday, 27 April 10.30am

On International Workers Memorial Day the Victorian Trades Hall Council is deeply concerned at  the massive increase in the number of people killed at work in Victoria in the past twelve months.
29 people have lost their lives at work in this state since the last Workers Memorial Day, a jump from 19 the year before.
These numbers reflect similarly high increases in the number of workplace deaths around the country.
VTHC Secretary, Brian Boyd said John Howard’s harsh and unjust work laws have directly undermined workplace health and safety standards.
“It is a tragedy that anyone should lose their life at work and to see the number of fatalities go up like this is very alarming. Unions have campaigned hard for many years around workplace safety and to have safety conditions cut due to bad laws is a travesty. This is the human cost of these unjust working laws.”
Figures from the Australian Safety and Compensation Council show there were 157 workplace fatalities in Australia from June 05 to June 06. Worldwide, work kills more people than wars.
On International Workers’ Memorial Day we remember the more than 2 million workers around the world who die, the more than 1.2 million who are injured, and the more than 160 million who become ill each year due to unsafe, unhealthy, or unsustainable work and workplaces.
The VTHC and (IDSA) will hold a commemoration service at the Workers’ Memorial at Trades Hall at 10.30am on Friday 27 April.
The theme for 2007 is Demand Safe and Healthy Standards and Enforcement. The Federal Government is also making it easier for employers to leave the state OHS system for the inferior Federal Comcare system. Recent changes to Comcare OHS and comp laws mean that there are fewer OHS and compensation rights under this regime.
 
Date: Friday, 27 April, 2007
Time: 10:30am – 12:00noon
Venue:  Memorial Rock, VTHC, cnr Lygon & Victoria Pde, Carlton South
Theme:    Demand Safe and Healthy Standards and Enforcement

10:15am People start gathering
10:30am MC Peter Marshall, President VTHC welcomes everyone, introduces the day, it’s purpose and talks about the fatalities so far this year in Victorian workplaces
10:35am Jack May, President IDSA
10:40am Brian Boyd, Secretary, VTHC talks about the affect of WorkChoices and other federal government changes on workplace health and safety
10:45am Leighton Ross, son of Peter Ross, MUA member, who died at work 19 January 2007 – affect of death on family and the MUA campaign for a nationally legislated stevedoring industry safety code of practice

11:00am 1 minute silence, laying of wreaths
11:01am The minute silence is broken by members of the Victorian Trade Union Choir singing a short song
11:05am media
11:10am proceed to Horti Hall
11:15am Quartet playing on arrival
11:20am Jack May, IDSA introduces Tatiana Davies (6 years old, her father, David Ramsay, died in 2002) and Joy Moon (IDSA) whose son died in 2003
11:30am close with Victorian Trade Union Choir
11:35am morning tea served

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