THE AUSTRALIAN Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has blasted what it says is Australia’s poor record on workplace death and injury, pushing for a stricter duty of care to be imposed on employers.
The ACTU says the death of two construction workers on the Gold Coast in June 2008 highlighted the need for stronger laws which allow unions to initiate prosecutions over breaches of workplace safety.
The Union says it and all State and Territory Trades and Labour Councils have rejected the view that any particular State laws should be the model for the nationalised occupational health and safety laws. They are calling for the “best possible” laws to be drawn from all States and Territory.
According to the ACTU, employers should acknowledge they will benefit from the reduced red tape resulting from the common and harmonised regulations throughout the Commonwealth, instead of seeing this as an opportunity to cut costs.

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