Deliberately venting gas to atmosphere as a work method is not a grey area, not a clever workaround, and not a risk trade off. It is a conscious decision to defeat controls, and regulators will treat it as exactly that, deliberate exposure to serious risk. This is a sharp reminder that safety prosecutions are no longer confined to what systems failed, they are increasingly focused on who chose to ignore them, and why. What happened In this matter, a company and an individual

On 23 Jul 25, the NSW District Court delivered a clear and uncomfortable message to company officers. Paul Whitmarsh, director of AWB Contractors Pty Ltd, was convicted and fined $300,000, close to the statutory maximum, for failing to exercise due diligence in connection with a fatal workplace incident at Rozelle Bay in Jan 21. The Court was unequivocal. The death was foreseeable, preventable, and directly linked to long-standing failures in how safety was managed at an off

Enforceable Undertakings (EUs) are not theoretical policy tools or compliance curiosities. Across Australia they are being actively used, accepted, and publicly tested by regulators. When you line them up across jurisdictions, a clear picture emerges of what regulators are rewarding, and what they are quietly rejecting. This article draws together published Enforceable Undertakings from 2025 across multiple regulators and sectors, not to catalogue them, but to show what they

On 02 Jan 23, two scenic flight helicopters collided near the helipad precinct at Sea World on the Gold Coast. Four people were killed, and others sustained serious, life-altering injuries. What should have been a routine tourist experience became one of the most confronting aviation incidents in recent Australian history, not because it involved an unfamiliar hazard, but because it exposed how easily trusted systems can drift into danger without triggering alarm. I can empat

In January 2026, WorkSafe WA confirmed a $750,000 fine against MLG Oz Limited after a diesel mechanic suffered a serious crush injury at the Mungari gold mine near Kalgoorlie. The incident did not involve an explosive failure or a rare mechanical fault, it involved a running conveyor, removed guarding, no enforced isolation, and a task that had quietly drifted into normal work without being treated as high risk. This episode is another example of how preventable injuries cont

I was on a work trip in another state and eating a quiet meal outside a hotel. It was just the normal sounds of a public place winding down for the night. Then I saw people moving into a crowd in the street. People were quickly and intensely coming together, all facing the same way. People held up their phones. People tilted their heads up. Something had caught everyone’s attention. My curiosity made me look in the same direction. I moved to get a better look at what ev

When the weather turns violent, Australia witnesses nature's ability to shatter our systems. Last weekend gave us two reminders: a tornado-like storm that tore through Melbourne’s western suburbs and a fast-moving bushfire near Drake in northern NSW. Both events put emergency crews, utilities, and local responders under extreme pressure. The message is clear for those of us in WHS and emergency leadership: moments like these test our readiness. Melbourne’s West: Tornadoes an

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Respiratory illnesses — from colds and flu through to occupational asthma, silicosis, and even COVID-19 — are more than just a health...

Australian safety regulators are sounding the alarm—not on traditional hazards, but on the growing threat of psychosocial risks. ...

A recent OHS Alert case featured a sobering headline: a PCBU “showed little or no regard for loyal workers.” Though details remain behind...

Workplace safety is a cornerstone of any responsible business, especially in high-risk industries. Yet, when we hear the term "safe...

Today marks a big milestone — I had the privilege of being the very first guest on the LinkedUp Podcast , and we didn’t hold back. From...