SWA kicks off National Safe Work Month

Safe Work Australia will release a range of resources to encourage businesses, employers and workers across Australia to know safety, work safely and make health and safety at work a priority, for the duration of National Safe Work Month.

National Safe Work Month is an opportunity to build awareness of work health and safety, encourage discussion about safety at work, and ensure everyone is aware of potential health and safety hazards and risks and how to manage these to keep workers safe. This year’s campaign focuses on different work health and safety topics each week. Week One will address injuries at work, Week Two will focus on mental health, Week Three will consider managing WHS risks and preventing harm, while Week Four will cover safe and healthy work for all.

During Week One, Safe Work Australia will focus on common work health and safety hazards and risks and how to control these risks to keep workers safe — whether that is from slips, trips and falls; lifting, pushing and pulling (manual tasks); or contact with moving objects. SWA has also released an infographic about slips, trips and falls, and how to identify and manage the risks of falls. There are also workplace hazards that aren’t visible but can cause injury or illness, such as noise, gases, vapours, fatigue, and sitting for too long in one position.

For information about workers’ compensation, SWA also provides workers’ compensation information sheets that outline what workers’ compensation is and how it can support workers. During the second week of National Safe Work Month, SWA will focus on mental health. Mental (psychological) health, just like physical health, is an important part of work health and safety. Preventing psychological harm is an essential part of creating a healthy and safe workplace.

Resources about work health and safety are also available on Safe Work Australia’s dedicated National Safe Work Month website.

Image credit: iStock.com/YinYang