This week's focus, For health: What WHS protects, highlights the many ways work can affect both physical and psychological health.
The Australian Work Health and Safety Strategy 2023-2033 identifies ongoing challenges including musculoskeletal conditions, psychological injuries, occupational diseases, psychosocial risks and exposure to harmful substances. Addressing these risks is critical to creating healthier workplaces and preventing harm before it occurs.
Many workplace hazards can have impacts that are not immediately visible. Exposure to hazardous chemicals and airborne contaminants, repetitive work, high job demands and fatigue can all contribute to serious long-term health outcomes.
This week, we encourage workplaces to identify one physical or psychosocial hazard and discuss how it could affect workers' health. Using the activity kit, you can map hazards, review existing controls and identify opportunities for improvement.
This week’s resources also covers the hierarchy of controls, a practical framework that helps workplaces select the most effective control measures by prioritising actions that eliminate or minimise risks at their source.
Get involved this week:
- Watch the Week 2 campaign video
- Identify one priority health risk in your workplace
- Complete the Health Hazards Map activity
- Review the effectiveness of your current control measures.
Access our model Code of Practice: Managing psychosocial hazards at work.