Despite statutory obligations that work site health and safety representatives be elected by their colleagues, the majority appear to be appointed by their employers, Besafe General Manager Jason Braithwaite says As the voice of the workers, they have statutory power to direct a worker who is in their work group to cease work that is not safe. Continue →

Phase Three of the Government’s Omicron response has kicked in, changing the self-isolation and testing requirements for close contacts Close contacts are only required to isolate if they are in the same household as an infected case, and Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) are set to become the primary testing method. Continue →

Hiring managers are known for asking the wrong interview questions without understanding the kind of questions that will validate culture fit and good leadership skills Hiring managers are known for asking the wrong interview questions without understanding the kind of questions that will validate culture fit and good leadership skills. Continue →

After a year of strong wage growth, median hourly pay has risen from $25 to $27 per hour, but some areas of the country have seen a bigger boost than others, OneStaff’s annual What’s my Rate? Continue →

The Government has announced its five step plan for the borders to re-open, meaning employers can once again start planning for skilled workers to enter the country, Civil Contractors Chief Executive Alan Pollard says While this will be a phased re-opening of the border, the good news is it will enable us to start bringing in skilled and experienced people from off-shore once again. Continue →

Business can be put in a tight spot if staff need to self-isolate, but a worker who is a close contact of a Covid19 case can continue to work in certain cases, provided they are vaccinated and displaying no symptoms The close contact exemption scheme is aimed at keeping critical supply chains running. Continue →

Construction in most of New Zealand has been operating under the Orange setting of the Covid-19 protection framework – SiteSafe and CHASNZ have worked with the industry to develop protocols for operating under the Red setting Site Entry Keep a record of who is on site, and when, every day as you may be required to track back for contact tracing. Continue →

Involving young people in the workplace is a great way to provide them with experience – however, there may be new or different risks that PCBUs need to manage Health and safety for young workers is not about excluding young people from the industry; it’s about identifying risk, assessing how likely that risk is to occur and managing it effectively. Continue →

WorkSafe New Zealand has issued three infringement notices totalling $20,000 to a business after months of failing to comply with Covid-19 requirements, says Head of General Inspectorate Simon Humphries Christchurch restaurant The Lotus-Heart has failed to display signage signalling whether it requires My Vaccine Pass use or not in a prominent place, isn’t displaying a QR Code in a prominent place and doesn’t have systems or processes to check My Vaccine Pass status of patrons. Continue →

We may have moved away from major lockdowns, but that doesn’t mean we are home free when it comes to avoiding the pandemic’s impact on construction projects, Civil Contractors New Zealand reports There is still potential for Covid-19 cases to force mandatory site shutdowns. Continue →

A mechanic doing work in a truck parking area had the back of his vehicle crushed by a departing truck, which drove off unaware of the incident A dump truck having mechanical issues was to be serviced by a mechanic in a truck parking area during a lunch break. Continue →

The $12,000 fine is the first COVID-related financial penalty handed out by WorkSafe under the traffic light system, says WorkSafe’s Head of General Inspectorate Simon Humphries WorkSafe New Zealand has issued an infringement notice to a business for failing to comply with its responsibilities under the COVID-19 Protection Framework. Continue →

With end of year just around the corner here’s some tips from Prospa on how to make sure you’re ready to capitalise on that summertime rush Savvy business owners should start putting things in place to secure a healthy cash flow to see through the end of year period, such as chasing unpaid invoices and putting aside cash for typical EOY expenses, like holiday rate payments, suggests Rob Drower, Partner at New Zealand small business consultancy, Prime Strategies Group. Continue →

CHASNZ has released a set of new protocols for the construction industry once New Zealand enters the new Covid-19 Protection Framework on December 3 A construction industry advisory group revised the previous COVID-19 Alert Level system construction protocols in response to the Government’s recently announced COVID-19 Protection Framework – also known as the Traffic Light system. Continue →

Programmes aimed at supporting employees’ health and wellbeing can also benefit their social relationships and reduce bullying, according to a new study Researchers from the University of East Anglia (UEA), working in collaboration with insurance and investments company Vitality, found that the more employees engage with health and wellbeing programmes (HWPs) the better the quality of co-worker relationships, the less they experience bullying over time, and the better their longer-term wellbeing and job satisfaction. Continue →

NordLocker research finds 37 percent of companies worldwide became victims of ransomware in 2020, and though no industry is safe from cyber attacks, industrial sectors were targeted the most, says NordLocker cybersecurity expert Oliver Noble NordLocker’s analysis of 1200 companies reveals that Construction is the top industry hit by ransomware (93 victimized companies), followed by Manufacturing (86). Continue →

Just as humans can be worn down by constant stress, so too can the equipment we use, but engineering plastics authority Laurie Green says thermoplastics is the future Shock, vibration, and constantly changing loads can accelerate wear in machinery and infrastructure, consume excess energy, and ultimately cause equipment to be taken out of service prematurely. Continue →

An upcoming state-of-the-art office building in Dunedin will be the case study for new safety trials, aimed at lowering the high number of workplace accidents in the building industry The construction industry represents 8% of the workforce, but accounts for more than 16% of ACC work claims, at a cost of $158 million annually. Continue →

About 40% of the country’s workforce are required to be vaccinated under the new Covid-19 traffic light system Currently, only high-risk workplaces and those in customer-facing roles will be required to have both doses of the vaccine. Continue →

Covid Alert Levels will soon be a thing of the past, but is the new traffic light system much better and will it still keep a lid on the virus? Continue →