Safety Alert 110 - Reporting Safety Incidents

Reporting incidents when they occur, both actual incidents and near misses, allows EGT to manage the incident and provide adequate help and support to the affected parties. It is also an essential part of identifying potential risks and hazards which may need to be controlled and helps us deploy strategies to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.

Over the past few months, the number of incidents where reporting has been delayed (significantly in some cases) has increased.

Recent incident reports reveal:

• ·    1 incident occurred 3 months before a report was made.
• 1 incident took place 11 days before a report was made.
• 3 incidents were reported 6 days after the incident.
• Another 3 cases had a 3-day reporting delay.
• A further 10 were not reported until the following workday.

This is unacceptable.

These delays have hindered our ability to provide the best care to our apprentices.

As an EGT apprentice, you are personally responsible for reporting all incidents

Apprentices may receive disciplinary action in cases where no valid reason for the delay has been identified. Since the beginning of the year, 7 apprentices have received disciplinary action for delayed or non-reporting of incidents.

As an employee of EGT, you are required to report all incidents to your host employer and to EGT, via your field officer or a member of EGT’s safety team. Non-compliance may result in disciplinary action.

Please note that in cases where the severity of an injury was not known on the day it occurred e.g., a shoulder strain that hurt a little on the day of the incident, but the following morning is hurting too much to go to work, that is then reported the next day is acceptable and will not incur disciplinary action.

What can happen if an incident or injury is not reported?

Here is an example scenario to consider. In this scenario, the apprentice misused a hand tool, and received a laceration to their hand.

If the apprentice did not report the injury and did not receive first aid and/or medical care, the following occurs:

(a) The wound becomes infected. This causes internal damage, requiring additional medical attention and delayed recovery. The negative impact of this is two-fold; the apprentice experiences a prolonged return to work, and the incident affects aspects of their personal life, such as sporting activities.

(b) As the original incident was not reported, the potential for future injuries has not been highlighted and preventative controls have not been put in place – either in the workplace where the incident occurred, or by EGT at an organisational level, depending on the circumstances.

(c) As the cause of the incident has not been identified and mitigated, a work colleague sustains an injury in similar circumstances, possibly with more severity than the original injury.

(d) There may have been expenses incurred by the apprentice that cannot be recuperated.

However, if the apprentice did report the injury, the following occurs:

(a) The injury is managed and appropriately cared for and the apprentice is supported through their recovery. As a result, the impact to their work and personal life is minimal and they are able to resume their work duties in a safe and controlled manner.

(b) The incident report is reviewed and the circumstances are analysed.

(c) Controls are put in place to manage the potential risk of the activity and to reduce the potential for future injury.

 

For further information regarding this Safety Alert, please contact EGT on (08) 6241 6100 or speak with your Field Officer.