Workplace Incidents During Public Holidays

by | Apr 17, 2019 | Work Health & Safety

With the Easter & ANZAC day public holidays having recently past, businesses that operate during public holidays want to know what to do when they have workplace incidents or injuries given many of the required supporting businesses are closed on Public Holidays?

Workplace Incidents During Public Holidays – It is pivotal during Public Holidays not to forget the importance of WHS practices as well as keeping staff informed of what to do in the event of a Workplace Incident or injury.

When you receive a notification of a workplace injury, there are some things you must do as an employer, including:

  • for emergencies contact 000 & follow instructions
  • Other incidents/injuries provide first aid and make sure the injured person gets the care needed
  • Contact ABILITY GROUP for advice. During public holidays, our Directors Julie and Marc will help you & are only a phone call away
  • notify workers compensation insurer of any injury or illness within 48 hours
  • record the injury in the register of injuries
  • maintain contact with your employee and support the injured person to recover at work
  • if it is a notifiable incident (refer below), you must also notify SafeWork

A ‘notifiable incident’ under the work health and safety legislation relates to:

  • the death of a person
  • a serious injury or illness of a person
  • a dangerous incident

Please Note: Significant penalties apply if you fail to notify an incident.

Below are some recommendations of what Employers should consider in order to avoid work-related incidents and what to do in the event of an accident.

  • Identify Staff Member/s to check that all safety measures are in place before, during and after service
  • Ensure critical contact information to staff working on Public Holidays of who to speak to/notify should an incident or injury occur should be displayed around the workplace and accessible by all staff members
  • Per above, notify workers compensation insurer as soon as possible in order to avoid penalties. AT Easter, Christmas & NY employers must ensure they report within 5 days of becoming aware of the injury to avoid a ‘claims excess payment’ (which is equivalent to one week of the worker’s weekly payments)
  • Contact ABILITY GROUP for assistance

Should you require assistance with the lodgement of a Workers compensation claim, please contact us.