Project Construction

Management
EPM5760

OHS in Construction

Unit: EPM5760 Project Construction Management

Prepared by: Mr Vin Sarma
Course Coordinator: Dr Amir Ghapanchi
Key Learning Areas
• Overview of Construction Industry in Australia
• National OHS Strategy 2002-2012
• Australian WHS Strategy 2012-2022
• OHS on Australia and History
• WHS Act, 2011 and Key Elements
• Due Diligence
• Managing Risk in the Construction Industry
• Safe Work Method Statement
• JSA
Main causes of Injuries and Fatalities
Serious Claims ~ by Occupation
Serious claims contd. Agency
OH& S

• OHS in Victoria
• History
– To implement standards in the Construction Industry The Lifts and Cranes
Act 1966
– Cranes Act 1971
– Construction Safety Act 1979
– OH& S Act 1985,1990,1992,1996,1997
» Maxwell Report
– The Occupational Health & Safety Act 2004
– Work Health and Safety Act 2011

• s5 & s6 ~ ‘….all Victorian workers are covered under the OH & S Act
2004 , it also includes general public so that their health and safety is
not placed at risk by the work activities….’
Legislative framework

Legislative framework
From the Victorian Compliance Framework handbook

• 2.1 Description of the Framework: The elements of the OHS Compliance

Framework are:
• • The Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004: The Act sets out the key
principles, duties and rights in relation to occupational health and safety.

• • Regulations: Regulations specify the way in which a duty imposed by the

Act must be performed, or prescribe procedural or administrative matters to
support the Act (e.g. requiring licences for specific activities, the keeping of
records or giving notice).

• • Compliance Codes: Compliance Codes provide practical guidance to duty

• holders. If a person complies with a provision of a Compliance Code, they are
• deemed to comply with the Act or regulation duty covered by the Code
provision.
Extent of General Duties
OH& S

• Scope of the OH & S Act 2004.

• These objects are meant to conform to the principles of health and safety
protection s4

i.e. it places persons managing or in control, to provide the

highest standard of protection against risks, to eliminate or reduce those risks
and be proactive in their endeavours of the above

Section 20 of the Act imposes duties on employers, employees, self- employed ,

designers, manufacturers, suppliers and others to undertake reasonable steps
to eliminate risks, or, if not possible, to reduce those risks ‘ as is reasonably
practicable’.
OH & S Act ( Vic)

• OHS Act 2004( Vic) s21 &s26-…

• ‘… an employer must, so far as is reasonably practicable, provide and
maintain for employees of the employer, a working environment that is safe
and without risks to health… and must ensure , so far as is reasonably
practicable…..that the workplace and the means of entering and leaving it
are safe and without risks to health…

• unlike other laws, the OHS Acts and Regulations DO NOT particularly
prohibit or prescribe precise conduct for safety implementation , but only
defines expected outcomes , and , guidelines to achieve these outcomes.
• 18th May 2009 the WRMC of the states , territories and New
Zealand agreed to a framework of uniform laws across Australia.

• The Work Health and Safety Act was then prepared the
Parliamentary Council’s Committee and approved by the WRMC
on 11 December 2009, revised on 11 May 2010
and
• came into effect 1st Jan 2012.
The Work Health & Safety Act 2011

 Came into effect 1st January 2012

The Regulatory Hierarchy

TheACT WHS
Act 2011

Regulations
WHS Regulations 2011

Codes of practice

Guidance material issued by

regulators
Standards

Workplace systems and procedures

Some Key Elements of WHS Act
2011

Due Diligence
Persons Conducting a Business or Undertaking

Duty of care

Reasonably Practicable

Duty to Consult
Terms ~ Influence & Control

Discrimination

Penalties

Role of Unions

Compliance and Enforcement

 Due Diligence

a. keep up-to-
date knowledge of
work health &
safety matters

b. understanding
f. Verify provision of the nature of
and use of operations of the
resources n and business or
processes ( c-e)
undertaking

. C. appropriate
resources and
e. Duty to comply processes to
eliminate or
minimise risks

d. To receive,
consider and
respond to risks
PCBU ~Persons Conducting a
Business or Undertaking
• Section 5 of WHS Act 2011 defines PCBU as :

• A person who conducts a business alone or with others whether or not the
business is for profit or gain.
• …. Whose primary duty is to take all “reasonably practicable” steps for ensure
the safety of “workers” ~
• Employee
• Contractors or their employees
• Outworker
• Apprentice or trainee
• student gaining work experience,
• volunteer or a person of a prescribed class.
‘Reasonably Practicable’…..

• Section 13: Part 2, Subdivision 2, s18 defines what is ‘reasonably practicable’

• …
• means that which is , or was at a particular time reasonably able to
be done in relation to ensuring health and safety, taking into account
and weighing up all relevant matters ..
Likelihood of hazard or risk

Degree of harm that may result

Knowledge of hazard/ risk and ways to

eliminate / minimise risks

Availability and suitability of ways to eliminate

/minimise risks

The cost to eliminate/minimise those risks

~ and if grossly disproportionate
Duty of workers and
others
• Workers
• Must take reasonable care
for themselves and others
• Comply with any
reasonable instruction
• Co-operate with any
reasonable policy or
procedure
• Other persons at the
workplace
• Duty similar to workers
Who is a worker?
A person who carries out work for a
person conducting a business or
undertaking in any capacity, including :
•Employee
• Contractor or subcontractor
•Employee of a contractor or
subcontractor
• Employee of labour hire company
• Outworker
• Apprentice or trainee
• Student on work experience
• Volunteer
49
Worker Duty of Care

• Worker Duty of Care

• All workers have a duty of care to ensure that they work in a manner
that is not harmful to their own health and safety and the health and
safety of others. Learn more about resolving health and safety issues
Worker Rights and Responsibilities
• A worker can be full-time, part-time or casual. A worker may be a person:
• who applies for WorkSafe Injury Insurance
• who has entered into or works under a contract of service (including a domestic
servant or an outworker)
• apprenticeship or otherwise with an employer and under that contract does manual
labour, clerical work, or otherwise
• person who is deemed to be working under a contract of service
• person who is deemed to be a worker
• pupil attending a school who is employed under a work experience arrangement
• student of a TAFE provider who is employed under an agreement
• person who is directly employed by one employer but contracted to work with
another (such as through an agency - refer to Labour Hire Workers: OHS Rights &
Responsibilities)
Reporting an Injury & Making a Claim
• Duty of care
• All workers have a duty of care to ensure that they work in a manner
that is not harmful to their own health and safety and the health and
safety of others. Learn more about resolving health and safety issues

• Reporting an Injury
• You must notify your employer of any injury or illness within 30 days
of you becoming aware of it.

• Making a Claim
• If you need medical treatment or time off work because of your injury
or illness, you need to make a claim. If you make a claim you can
choose your preferred doctor or healthcare provider. If occupational
rehabilitation services are offered to you, you can choose from a list
of at least three providers of these services.
 Representation & Return to Work
• Representation
• An injured worker can be represented, assisted and supported in the return to work
process. A worker's representative cannot be a legal practitioner.
• An employer must consult directly with an injured worker about their return to work,
however a worker may be assisted by a representative during any consultation.

• Return to work information

• An employer must make information available to a worker about:- the employer's return to
work obligations and how the employer is meeting these obligations,
• the return to work rights and obligations of the worker and how workers can obtain further
information about their rights and obligations,
• the name and contact details of the employer's authorisedAgent,
• the name and contact details of the employer's return to work coordinator (if applicable),
and the procedure for resolving return to work issues.
• An employer must consult with their workers as to how the above information is provided.
Influence vs. Control

• A PCBU who does not manage or control a workplace but only

influences or directs a worker is still responsible

• Compared with current Vic OHS Act – effectively persons who have
control or management of workplaces are responsible for safety

• Raises the issue of how much “influence” or “direction” is

required to be responsible
Duty to Consult

• As far as reasonably practicable:

• PCBU to consult, co-operate and coordinate with others who have a duty
eg. contractors, sub-contractors, suppliers, occupiers

• PCBU to consult with workers carrying out the work – not just direct
employees but all who are working for or in the business of the PCBU
Union rights of entry

• WHS entry permit holder can enter to inquire into

suspected breaches, as well as to consult and advise
workers
• subject to permit and member eligibility requirements, protections
and accountability
• Aligned with requirements in the Fair Work Act 2009.
• No notice for suspected breach
• 24 hours notice to consult, advise or obtain documents
Protection of workers

• Greater protection of workers, prospective workers and persons

involved in commercial transactions against discrimination and
coercion
Investigative Powers

• Greater investigative and questioning powers:

• Abrogation of the right to silence;

• Cannot refuse answers/information based on privilege against self-

incrimination;

• Legal professional privilege protected.

Penalties

• Significant increase in maximum penalties –

• up to $3M for corporation and
• up to $600K/5 yrs. jail for an officer (Category 1 offence –
recklessness causing death or serious injury)
Penalties for breaches of duty of
care
Categories based on degree of ‘culpability’ and risk/degree of harm
Corporation: $3m
Category 1 Individual as a PCBU or an officer: $600k / 5 years jail
Individual e.g. worker: $300k / 5 years jail

Category 2 Corporation: $1.5m

Individual as a PCBU or an officer: $300k
Individual e.g. worker: $150k

Category 3 Corporation: $500k

Individual as a PCBU or an officer: $100k
Individual e.g. worker: $50k

60
Current Status of Model Act?

• Commonwealth:
• Implemented the ModelAct, Regulations and Codes of Practice effective 1
January 2012
• Implemented in all states except VIC.
Safety Leadership under Model Act

• Officers of a PCBU must exercise “due diligence”

• It imposes a “positive” duty on officers to exercise due diligence
with respect to safety
• Prosecution has the onus of proving failure to exercise due
diligence
Due Diligence
“Due Diligence” means taking reasonable steps to:

• Acquire and keep up to date knowledge

• Gain an understanding of business operations and its risks and hazards

• Ensure PCBU has available and uses appropriate resources and processes
for eliminating or minimising risks

• Ensure PCBU has appropriate processes for receiving and considering info
on incidents, hazards and risks and responds in timely manner

• Ensure that the PCBU has and implements processes for complying with its
obligations;

• Verify the provision and use of the resources and processes referred to
above.
 (5) In this section, due diligence includes taking reasonable steps:
 (a) to acquire and keep up-to-date knowledge of work health and safety matters; and

 (b) to gain an understanding of the nature of the operations of the business or

undertaking of the person conducting the business or undertaking and generally of
the hazards and risks associated with those operations; and

 (c) to ensure that the person conducting the business or undertaking has
available for use, and uses, appropriate resources and processes to eliminate or
minimise risks to health and safety from work carried out as part of the conduct of
the business or undertaking; and

 (d) to ensure that the person conducting the business or undertaking has
appropriate processes for receiving and considering information regarding
incidents, hazards and risks and responding in a timely way to that information;
and

 (e) to ensure that the person conducting the business or undertaking has,
and implements, processes for complying with any duty or obligation of the
person conducting the business or undertaking under this Act; and

 (f) to verify the provision and use of the resources and processes referred
to in paragraphs (c) to (e).
Safety Leadership under Model Act

• Officers of a PCBU must exercise “due diligence” to ensure

that the PCBU complies with its obligations
• It imposes a “positive” duty on officers to exercise due
diligence with respect to safety
• An officer can breach this duty even where there has not
been a safety incident or a contravention of the Act by the
PCBU
• Prosecution has the onus of proving failure to exercise due
diligence
Code of Practice for managing Risk in
Construction Work S 274 of WHS Act.
• This COP is a practical guide to achieving the standards of health, safety and welfare under
the WHS Act and the Work Health and Safety Regulations (the WHS Regulations).

• THIS COP applies to anyone who has a duty of care in the circumstances described in the
code… but do not cover all hazards or risks which may arise. The health and safety duties
require duty holders to consider all risks associated with work, not only those for which
regulations and codes of practice exist.
• COP are admissible in court proceedings as evidence under the WHSAct and Regulations
… of what is known about a hazard, risk or control and may rely on the code in determining
what is reasonably practicable in the circumstances to which the code relates.
• Courts may regard a code of practice as evidence
• Compliance with the WHSAct and Regulations may be achieved by following another
method, such as a technical or an industry standard, if it provides an equivalent or higher
standard of work health and safety than the code.
• An inspector may refer to an approved code of practice when issuing an improvement or
prohibition notice.
• This Code of Practice has been developed by Safe Work Australia as a model code of
practice under the Council of Australian Governments’ Inter-Governmental Agreement
Duties of a PCBU relating to
construction work
• Who has duties relating to construction work?

• Person conducting a business or undertaking

• A person conducting a business or undertaking has the primary duty under the
WHS Act to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that workers and other
persons are not exposed to health and safety risks arising from the business or
undertaking.
 Duties contd.
• The WHS Regulations also require a PCBU to carry out specific duties for high risk
construction work which include:
• ensuring a Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) before commencement of work

• arrangements to ensure that work is carried out in accordance with the SWMS

• stopping the work immediately (or as soon as it is safe to do so) if it is not carried out in
accordance with the SWMS and only resumed as per the details in the SWMS

• If a construction project, a SWMS must be given to the principal contractor before the work
commences

• SWMS is reviewed and as necessary revised if relevant control measures are revised

• SWMS is kept and is readily available for inspection as specified in the WHS Regulations,

• ensuring a copy of the SWMS is made available to any worker engaged by PCBU to carry out
high risk construction work.
Managing Risks relating to
Construction work
Managing Risks relating to
Construction work .contd.
Managing Risks relating to
Construction work contd.

• A person conducting a business or undertaking should also ensure there are

effective procedures in place to identify and record hazards:

• before and during the installation, erection, commissioning or alteration of plant

• before changes to systems of work are introduced or a significant change to the

construction workplace, or a part of it, is implemented

• before hazardous substances are introduced, and

• when new or additional occupational safety and health information from an

authoritative source becomes available - for example, national standards or codes
of practice, guidance material produced by a regulatory authority, industry codes of
practice or information from manufacturers, suppliers or designers.
 Minimising the risk
• Combination of control measures
• In many cases a combination of control measures may be implemented. For example, to
control the risk of persons working in the same area from being struck by mobile plant
control measures should include:
• using traffic lights instead of a traffic controller to control traffic at road works (substitution)
• replacing an item of mobile plant which has a restricted field of vision to one that has a
clear field of vision (substitution)
• using zero tail swing excavators rather than conventional tail swing excavators
(substitution)
• segregating the work processes through distance and time (isolation)
• installing reversing cameras and audible warning devices activated when the vehicle is
reversing (engineering)
• developing and implement a traffic management plan for any traffic control activities being
carried out (administrative), and
• requiring all workers to wear high visibility reflective clothing or vests (PPE).
• When selecting and implementing a combination of risk controls it is important to consider
whether any new risks might be introduced as a result and, if so, the combination of risk
controls should be reviewed.
Controlling Risks in Construction Work
Objects that could fall include:
• parts of a structure being built or dismantled
• walls being demolished
• materials stored or stacked at the workplace
• construction or waste material
• Debris, plant, tools, scaffolding components, and, pre-cast concrete
panels.
Safe Work Method Statement
Safe Work Method Statement

• A safe work method statement (SWMS) is a document that:

• lists the types of high risk construction work being done

• states the health and safety hazards and risks arising from that work
• describes how the risks will be controlled, and
• describes how the risk control measures will be put in place and
maintained

• All persons conducting a business or undertaking at the workplace must ensure a

SWMS is prepared for any high risk construction they propose to carry out. It must
be prepared prior to the high risk construction work commencing
Preparing a SWMS
• A SWMS must be prepared prior to high risk construction work being undertaken at the
workplace.

• When developing a SWMS the following must be taken into consideration:

• the circumstance at the workplace that may affect the way in which the high risk construction
work is carried out, and on a construction project, the WHS management plan prepared by
the principal contractor.

• The SWMS must:

• identify work that is high risk construction work
• specify hazards relating to the high risk construction work and risks to health and safety
associated with those hazards
• describe the measures to be implemented to control the risks, and
• describe how the risk control measures are to be implemented, monitored and reviewed.
Contd.

• It is recommended that a SWMS also includes the following information:

• the person conducting a business or undertaking’s name, address and ABN (if they
have one)
• details of the person(s) responsible for ensuring implementation, monitoring and
compliance with the SWMS, and

• if the work is being carried out at a construction project workplace:

• the name of the principal contractor
• the address where the high risk construction work will be carried out
• the date prepared and the date provided to the principal contractor, and
• the review date (if any).
JSA

What is JSA ?
• 5 steps for effective JSA
– Document the activity
– Identify the hazards
– Document the control measure
– Identify who is responsible
– Monitor and review
Permit Zones
Category 3 permits
required to access
these zones
 "!

ALL · ALLELECTRIC..
. DS&P
LEA OWER
. VISITORS TOOLSMUSTBE.
'

MUST CHECKED·&TAGGED
_
REPORTTO BEFOREBEING
SITEOFFICE USEDONSITE

• VICTORIA
vu.edu.au T UNIVERSITY
CRICOSProvider No:00124K ME LBOUR N E A USTRA LIA
Job Safety Analysis Worksheet
Date: JSA No.

Company Name
Yes/No
Permit to work requirement
Site Name

Contractor

Activity

Activity Hazards Risk control Measures

Who is responsible
 Thank You

Any Questions