Work Safety Laws Amended and New Codes of Practice Introduced
Following feedback from industry, amendments have been made to Queensland's work health and safety laws which came into effect on 15 November 2013:
• Further extension of some transitional arrangements and the starting date of a number of un-commenced provisions in the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 to 1 January 2015. This is to allow proposed changes to be reviewed by the Select Council for Workplace Relations.
• Extension of transitional arrangements for high risk work licensing where the national competency units and assessment instruments are not available until 1 January 2015, to allow registered training organisations time to deliver training.
• New provisions to give permanent effect to class exemptions granted for certified bridge and gantry crane operators and intermediate boiler operators.
• Clarification of requirements for specific control measures to be used where there is a risk of falling at least three metres in housing construction work or at least two metres in other construction work.
• Repeal of specific provisions relating to spray painting and excavation work that were carried over from the repealed Workplace Health and Safety Regulation 2008 as an interim measure from 1 December 2013.
• Other minor and technical amendments to ensure consistency with the national model Work Health and Safety Regulation.
As well as the Queensland review, there were also changes at a national level which saw the introduction of new Queensland codes as well as existing codes replaced or repealed as of 1 December 2013. The new codes are:
• Abrasive Blasting Code of Practice 2013
• Demolition Work Code of Practice 2013
• Excavation Work Code of Practice 2013
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2013
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2013
• Safe Design of Structures Code of Practice 2013
• Spray Painting and Powder Coating Code of Practice 2013
• Welding Processes Code of Practice 2013
The codes no longer in use are:
•Abrasive Blasting Code of Practice 2004
•Hazardous Chemicals Code of Practice 2003
•Plant Code of Practice 2005
•Tunnelling Code of Practice 2007
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