A recent NSW Industrial Relations Court decision has agitated the question of whether an employer needs to provide written safe work procedures to its employees as part of their duty to provide a safe workplace.
In Inspector McCarthy (nee Shaw) v Siva & Jeya Pty Ltd [2015] NSWDC 15 a company and its director were prosecuted after an employee suffered severe burns while filling a burning pot used to heat food trays for a buffet style meal. The pots were filled using methylated spirits.
One of the allegations in the case was that the employer had not provided the employee with a “written safe work method” for the task. The Court found that the failure to provide the written information was not a breach of the employers obligations:
I do not think that the case for providing her with a written safe work method is made good. The…
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KEY FINDING FROM ARTICLE
To discharge obligations to ensure relevant training and competency in the workplace, employers need to be able to demonstrate that:
Workers have been provided with the relevant information about how to do their job safely;
Workers understand that information;
Work is actually performed in accordance with the training; and
There is ongoing supervision and enforcement of the training.