New measures called for to address lack of progress in reducing work-related deaths
Employers across New Zealand should appoint a workplace health and safety (WHS) adviser to improve WHS outcomes amid the lack of substantive progress in reducing work-related deaths in the country.
This is according to the Public Health Communication Centre (PHCC) in a new briefing it released on Friday ahead of the 15th anniversary of the Pike River mine disaster, which killed 29 workers.
In the briefing, the PHCC outlined various measures that could improve WHS in New Zealand after recent data show that work-related deaths "not substantively reduced since 2010."
"Every business should be required to have available competent health and safety advisers to help ensure better integration of WHS and business processes," the briefing read.
"We do this for tax matters, why not workplace health and safety?"
The PHCC pointed out that the workplace fatality rate in New Zealand as of 2023 remains higher than in Australia and the United Kingdom.
"The number of work-related deaths has not substantively reduced since 2010," it added.
The injury rate in New Zealand also remains high over the years, costing the country more than $5 billion annually.
"Our productivity is falling behind other countries despite research evidence showing that businesses can use workplace health and safety to improve performance as well as avoiding harming workers and other people," it said.
Further WHS measures needed
Additionally, the PHCC called for stronger enforcement of WHS rules in sectors where there are disproportionately high fatalities and serious injuries, such as farming, forestry, and construction.
"WorkSafe is giving these more attention but as advisers, not as regulators, and with limited resources. Remember - employers own the duty of care," it said.
The PHCC further pointed out that fines under the Health and Safety at Work Act also need to increase to keep up with inflation, while directors and firms listed in the Companies Office should be told annually what the law requires of them in maintaining WHS.
"We should follow the path taken by other countries to better protect the lives and wellbeing of our workers and also boost productivity. We owe the 29 Pike River miners this much," the centre said.
The briefing comes ahead of the 15th anniversary of the Pike River mine disaster on November 19, where 29 miners passed away after a methane explosion.
The tragedy put stronger scrutiny on the country's workplace health and safety record, and resulted in the introduction of WorkSafe and the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
The New Zealand government has been aiming to reform the country's work health and safety system to reduce unnecessary compliance, as well as complex rules and regulations.
