Victorian employers and those responsible for prescribed equipment, including those in Sunbury and the Macedon Ranges, will now need to notify WorkSafe of incidents involving a wider range of machinery.
Introduced on July 1, the change means that commonly used high-risk machinery such as tractors, quad bikes, forklifts, excavators and mining and quarrying equipment are now included in the list of machinery incidents that must be reported.
This aligns the notification requirements under the occupational health and safety regulations and the equipment (public safety) regulations, providing clarity around when an incident is notifiable.
WorkSafe must be notified when an incident involving prescribed machinery or equipment leads to a serious health and safety risk due to collapse, overturning, failure, malfunction or damage.
WorkSafe executive director of health and safety Sam Jenkin said that operating machinery and equipment, like forklifts and excavators, is a routine part of daily life for many Victorians.
“Updating these regulations will mean there is more transparency and accountability around reporting incidents, which is crucial for identifying patterns and preventing workers from being at serious risk of harm,” Mr Jenkin said.
“Victorians working with and around machinery should feel confident that incident notification reform will lead to a better informed and safer work environment for everyone”.
More than 8300 injury claims, almost a third of all claims accepted by WorkSafe last year, related to machinery and equipment.
Failure to inform WorkSafe immediately after becoming aware that a notifiable incident has occurred is an offence and may result in prosecution.
Incidents can be reported to WorkSafe’s 24/7 emergency line on 13 23 60.
