Construction industry businesses with a history of injury claims will be targeted by SafeWork SA from 1 July this year in a campaign to clamp down on unsafe work practices.
The wide-reaching campaign will target medium and large construction businesses, labour hire companies and Group Training Organisations (GTOs).
The campaign will also include initiatives to address:
- Common construction industry injury causes such as muscular stress, falling objects, and slips, trips and falls
- High-risk occupations such as electricians and carpenters
- Crystalline silica substances compliance with the new regulations
- Licensed asbestos removal practices
- The safe use of scaffolds in residential construction.
Construction is Australia’s second largest industry, comprising three major sectors: Building Construction, Construction Services, and Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction.
These sectors operate across both private and public domains, driving significant economic activity through residential, commercial, and infrastructure projects.
In South Australia, 87,000 workers are employed in the construction sector, which is 9 percent of all employment. Employment in construction has grown by 16,300 workers in SA since 2020.
The joint campaign with ReturnToWorkSA will target 20 organisations with high injury claims, including private businesses, GTOs, and labour hire companies.
These businesses will undergo both desktop audits and site visits to monitor injury data and compliance with WHS laws.
A further 18 businesses with a spike in claims between 2023 and 2024 will also be targeted.
The campaign aims to:
- Improve compliance with safety regulations
- Reduce injury rates
- Enhance workplace safety culture
- Lead to early identification and mitigation of risks
- Improve incident investigation and hazard control practices
- Increase awareness about the important role of Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) on work sites.
A further strategy will be developed for GTOs and labour hire businesses with a proportionately high number of injury claims among young workers. Focus areas will include leading injury causes such as falls, nail gun use, power tools and electric shock.
The young worker strategy will be developed in collaboration with the Skills Commission to help identify trends and implement risk mitigation strategies.
In the three financial years from 2022 to 2024, SafeWork SA was notified of 132 serious injuries among apprentices, including 51 that required the apprentice to be admitted to hospital.
The most common injuries were caused by falls from heights, nail guns, power tools, sharp edges and falling objects. More than two thirds of the reported injuries were in the construction industry.
Safe Work Australia data shows the construction industry had the second highest number of fatalities in 2023 after transport, postal and warehousing. Construction also had the second highest number of injury claims behind health care and social assistance.
SafeWork SA ran a construction industry compliance campaign from February to November 2024.
Inspectors conducted 213 compliance audits during the campaign at residential and commercial construction sites. The audits resulted in 674 statutory notices being issued – 195 prohibition notices, 475 improvement notices and four expiation notices with a value of $9,036.
SafeWork SA is also rolling out new campaigns targeting the priority industries of Forestry, Manufacturing, Transport and Healthcare.
The campaigns will include site visits and compliance audits to detect and deter unsafe workplace behaviour.
The agency’s presence on worksites is increasing with 4486 recorded site visits and 4038 statutory notices issued in the first nine months of this financial year.
Quotes attributable to SafeWork SA Director Compliance and Enforcement Brett Pfeffer:
Construction continues to be a concern when it comes to the high number of injuries and compensation claims we are seeing, particularly among apprentices.
Working with ReturnToWorkSA will allow us to target specific businesses and injury types and monitor their safety performance thereafter.
Enabling businesses to eliminate or significantly reduce the risk of injury in line with their work, health and safety obligations is key to providing a safe work environment for workers.
