Cafes audit reveals safety issues

WorkCover inspected 33 cafes and restaurants in the ACT earlier this year revealing several common safety issues and a lack of compliance with elements of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1989 and the Dangerous Substance Act 2004.

Hazards associated with the café and restaurant industry include injuries from slips, trips and falls, manual handling, working with hot surfaces and sharp objects such as knives.

Less than a third of the cafes and restaurants maintained a register of hazardous substances commonly in use in the workplace and less than half had material safety data sheets for the chemicals used or trained their staff in emergency procedures relating to chemicals.

Other issues identified during the audit include incident reporting to ACT WorkCover and documentation of training and induction.

"Employers should ensure that health and safety induction training is provided for all workers whether they are casual or permanent employees and that a system is in place for recording safety incidents and for reporting notifiable to ACT WorkCover," ACT WorkCover Commissioner/CEO Erich Janssen said.

ACT WorkCover issued 20 Compliance Agreements in relation to testing and tagging of fire extinguishers and 12 Improvement Notices relating to reporting and recording procedures, testing and tagging of electrical equipment and the absence of an OHS policy on the premises.

ACT WorkCover has released a report on the audit with recommendations. The full report of the audit can be viewed at ACT WorkCover