Health, Safety & Wellbeing (HSW) Team Talk - July 2023
HSW TEAM TALK
Welcome to the fourth edition of HSW Team Talk.
In this edition: •
HS&W training and events Important Procedures Update
•
• Join Our Health, Safety & Wellbeing Committee • Covid-19 Hub Update
Quarterly safety mindset quote
"A great safety culture: when people continue to work safely, and do the right thing, even when no one is watching.” — Author unknown
HSW activities and new training:
New Mandatory Training
Date
Audience
Occupational Violence & Aggression online module for Working Safely with Clients and Others Procedure (20 mins)
From early July
All client- and public- facing employees: New and existing employees. 3 months to complete for existing staff.
OHS/WHS Masterclass (completion of all 4 x half day sessions) 1.30pm to 5pm.
Wed 20 Sep, Thu 28 Sep, Wed 4 Oct, Thu 12 Oct
People Leaders.
Upcoming training
Date
Audience/Information
October
Employee Assistance Program Awareness Sessions for Managers and Employees.
Employees, Managers
Activities
Date
Audience/Information
15 th June completed.
Health, Safety & Wellbeing Committee meeting (quarterly – meeting no.2/4) Agenda & Minutes
HS&W Committee members and guests.
28 th September, 3-4.30pm
Health, Safety & Wellbeing Committee meeting (quarterly – meeting no.3/4)
Health Safety & Wellbeing Committee Members and guests. Catherine House WHS Forum members. People leaders and HSRs; a separate communication will be sent.
16 th August completed. Required: Due by 15 th September
WHS Forum Catherine House meeting (quarterly – meeting no.3/4)
HSW Quarterly Workplace Inspections
Important Procedures Update:
One of our foundational safety procedures has been updated. The Identifying hazards, reporting incidents and managing HS&W Risks procedure has several new or updated requirements so staff and people leaders should review this document and discuss any changes at a team meeting. The procedure also includes several linked guidance documents to help everyone with carrying out their jobs safely. What do employees need to know and do? There are a few key updates that employees should be aware of: • Employees should continue to report incidents, near misses and hazards through Elumina online reporting system. • Employees can now choose a Sensitive Incident option when submitting an incident report on Elumina. This option can be chosen for issues of bullying, sexual harassment, discrimination or mental health issues, where employees would like the sensitive reporting protocols to be taken. Sensitive reporting protocols means that only Health, Safety & Wellbeing and People & Culture are alerted to the incident, rather than a person’s management reporting line. • There is new guidance on Occupational violence & aggression: What and how to report which explains all the types of OVA incidents and hazards that need to be reported via Elumina. What’s do people leaders need to know and do ? There are several new sections of this procedure that managers should familiarise themselves with and carry out where applicable: • The requirement to review (investigate) incidents with 24 hours of a report being made. • New comprehensive incident investigation process for serious or complex incidents led by Health, Safety & Wellbeing. • Pro-active HS&W risk assessments and when they need to be undertaken, and guidance on how to do this. • Immediate reporting for Notifiable Incidents or Dangerous Occurrences to Health, Safety and Wellbeing/People & Culture and Safety regulators. • The requirement for any Entry Reports, Provisional Improvement Notices, Improvement Notices or Prohibition Notices issued to Housing Choices by an HSR/Safety inspector must be provided to the HS&W Manager immediately. • The requirement for People Leaders to carry out the HS&W Workplace inspection & Systems Checklist at each worksite 3 times a year in April, July, and November in consultation with Health and Safety representatives to proactively identify hazards/risks. People leaders can rotate or delegate this task.
New Procedure: Working Safely with Clients and Others.
The Working Safely with Clients and Others Procedure has been developed in consultation with our Occupational Violence and Aggression (OVA) working group, HS&W Committee, and Housing Services Leadership group. This national procedure applies to all Housing Choices workplaces and will replace previous similar policies and procedures. This is a key Safe Work Procedure that forms part of Housing Choices safe systems of work for staff working with clients and tenants either face to face, over the phone or via email. A 15-minute e-module has been developed in People Centre to familiarise employees with the key safe systems of work in this procedure. Existing employees can complete the module within a 3-month period and new employees should complete it within a month of commencement. The module will be allocated within People Centre to applicable employees in early July. Join our Health, Safety & Wellbeing Committee Are you interested in joining our Health and Safety Committee as an Employee or Management Representative? Our committee members through their work experience, organisational knowledge, and job role expertise are consulted by Health, Safety and Wellbeing, to assist us to build a fit for purpose Health and Safety Management System and programs. Our committee meets quarterly, and we would love to invite members across Housing Choices to express their interest in joining. Click on our HS&W Committee Intranet Page, where you will see our current members, Terms of Reference, and previous agendas and minutes.
To ensure we have good representation across states and functions, we would be keen to hear from the following potential representatives:
Employee Rep Vacancies
Management Rep Vacancies
SA Housing
Housing Choices Operations from WA, SA, or Tas.
WA Corporate
Commercial any State
WA Housing
Corporate any State
Vic Housing
Vic Corporate
Specialist Housing Group
Commercial
Your input to our HS&W Committee is welcome and vital for employee safety and wellbeing. Don’t worry there is only very minimal reading of documents for this committee, so workload will not be an issue!
Express your interest now by contacting health-safety-wellbeing@hcau.org.au or contact Susan Hamley, HS&W Manager for more information. You can also attend as a guest at our next meeting on 28 th September at 3pm, so you can try it out. Updated COVID-19 Hub Our COVID-19 Hub is now located on the Health, Safety and Wellbeing Intranet Page. It has been updated with our current national plan and guidance and Catherine House’s Covid -19 plan to ensure we keep each other safe and prevent the spread of this disease. It also has helpful resources and news items to keep you up to date.
Your Team’s Safety Discussion - What are your local HSW matters?
Hold a team discussion led by the Health and Safety Representative (HSR) and/or People Leader. Discuss your local safety matters with your teams using the guidance below.
• Discuss the safety mindset quote (above) and how that might reflect on safety situations or outcomes in the team. • Have there been any HSW/WHS concerns prominent in the work group lately? • Have there been any incidents, injuries or hazards that have not been reported via Elumina (but need to be)? • Are there any incidents or hazard corrective actions that have not been resolved? • Is workload manageable now? Do we need to plan for upcoming workload pressures? • Are there new procedures or guidelines that need to be implemented. • Have there been any difficult client interactions that need additional support or a safety plan? • Have all new staff received a health and safety induction using the People Centre checklist? • Is there any HSW training that the work group needs? • Do we currently have enough first aid officers, emergency wardens, health and safety representatives? • Are there any learnings from previous incidents or safety investigations? • Updates from last HSW committee meeting. Here are the Agenda & Minutes. The staff HSW intranet The HSW intranet serves as a comprehensive hub for valuable resources, supporting our commitment to a safe and healthy workplace. It houses a wealth of information updated regularly, including safety guidelines, training materials, and wellness initiatives, ensuring easy access for all employees. With the intranet as our go-to platform, staff are encouraged to stay informed and proactive in maintaining a secure and conducive work environment. Feedback We welcome your feedback about HSW Team Talk, and any ideas you have for information or activities you would you or your team are interested in. Feedback can be sent to health-safety- wellbeing@hcau.org.au If you would like to provide anonymous feedback, please provide through the Feedback suggestion box on the intranet LINK.
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