With more than 1,000 employees, Wollongong City Council is using an online OH&S program to ensure its policies and procedures can be accessed by staff across the organisation.
In the past, Council experienced a varying level of OH&S performance across different departments due to complex and time consuming processes, policies and procedures, which were unfriendly for the end user. Duplication of some information and a lack of sharing of information and experience also meant the information available was not always accurate.
Council’s Human Resources Officer, Laurie Boyle, said that updating such a large amount of information and having personnel to retrain a large number of staff also proved a problem.
“Council introduced the ‘Get Smart Stay Safe’ online OH&S program in 2004,” he said. “It is a strategic and comprehensive program designed to reduce risk of injury and illness to Council employees, contractors and visitors, while ensuring compliance with legislative requirements.
“The system, which is available to all staff on the internal intranet, comprises general safety advice, corrective actions, risk assessments, standard operating procedures and so forth. All the information is current and controlled, as it can all be managed from one location and updated simultaneously so that everyone is accessing the same up to date information.”
To further promote workplace safety, Wollongong has also implemented an ongoing marketing campaign within Council. Cartoon posters and banners are placed around Council offices and work depots. These are changed monthly to promote a different safety action, for example, correct lifting, manual handling, or a general ‘think about safety’ campaign. Council also distributes a monthly ‘News and Views’ newsletter, featuring articles about prevention and promotion of health, such as how to protect against UV radiation.
“In two and a half years, Council has moved from being recognised as a poor performer in OH&S to one that is now leading the way as a benchmark for other Councils,” Laurie Boyle said. “We have seen an increased awareness of OH&S in the workplace, an improvement in work practices, and a reduction in the severity and nature of injuries.”
For further information contact Shaun Martin, Council’s Manager Human Resources, on (02) 4227 7073.
