Climate change risks in focus for World Day and Workers’ Memorial Day

Both days fall on 28 April, recognising workplace health and safety and remembering people who have died from work-related injuries and illnesses. Boland said Australia’s WHS outcomes compare favourably internationally, but workplace deaths and life-changing injuries remain too common.

Around 200 people are killed at work in Australia each year, with many more dying from work-related diseases. More than 125,000 Australians are seriously injured at work annually. Boland described the devastating consequences for workers, their families and the wider community.

Boland said honouring those who have died also means keeping the WHS system relevant and flexible as workplace risks change. She called for workplace safety to be central to how work is designed around climate change.

The International Labor Organisation and International Trade Union Confederation have both focused their themes for the commemorations on climate change’s impact on WHS.

Heat, flooding and extreme weather events are increasingly likely to interrupt normal business operations. Meanwhile, new technologies and industries associated with decarbonisation and the circular economy are creating roles and introducing new workplace health and safety risks.

The statement also identified climate change, growing urbanisation and closer proximity between humans and animals as factors contributing to new infectious diseases and the increased transmission and spread of other diseases.

Boland said the Australian Work Health and Safety Strategy provides a foundation for improving WHS over the next decade, including addressing emerging issues associated with climate change and the green economy. She reaffirmed Safe Work Australia’s commitment to safe and healthy work for all.

How Blue Safe can help: Our free WHS self-check can help you review your business’s approach to workplace health and safety and identify areas for closer attention as risks change. Take the free WHS self-check