17 January 2012

Worksafe wants to make sure doggers are licensed

| johnboy
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The ACT Work Safety Commissioner Mark McCabe has published a reminder for those undertaking dogging work in the ACT to ensure they are licensed.

Those of our readers who’ve been on the internet too long will be surprised we’re regulating this sort of thing.

Those readers may be relieved to learn that dogging in this case is related to slings and hoists…

No wait:

The Regulation defines ‘dogging work’ as the application of slinging techniques, including the selection and inspection of lifting gear, to safely sling a load.

“For example, this would include work that involved the slinging of loads from excavators on construction sites when excavators are used to sling a load of pipes to facilitate their movement from one part of the site to another,” Mr McCabe continued.

Mr McCabe reminded local industry members that the holding of some form of ‘partial dogging licence’ is insufficient to meet the requirements of the law. “WorkSafe ACT has received a number of enquiries in recent months regarding partial dogging licences.

Employers and workers should be aware that a full dogging licence is required for this kind of work to be undertaken.

“If employers and workers are unsure if the course they are attending will meet dogging requirements, they should contact WorkSafe ACT and check that the licence will be compliant with the legislation. This will save them a lot of time and money in the long run,” concluded Mr McCabe.

If you have an enquiry regarding your dogging licence, contact WorkSafe ACT on 6207 3000.

Well I’m glad we’ve cleared that up.

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People die on construction sites. Fewer people die on union sites that emphasize proper safety precautions and protect members who insist on a safe environment.

Regulation works. That’s why there are laws to protect construction workers and passersby. It might be a little frustrating for a few people who nerd to keep up with the new paperwork for a job they already know but it protects the entire community by ensuring a common baseline training.

milkman said :

Um… woof?

Whatever floats your boat.

Seriously? Some people here think it’s red tape that someone who is responsible for loading up what may be tonnes of material to be lifted high into the sky by a crane, needs some form of qualification?

This isn’t about self preservation here – we’re not talking about an accident that may result in whoever screwed up being injured alone. Just think about how many construction sites there are in Canberra that are besides a busy road. What’s going to happen if the muppet loading up a few tonnes of steel pipes from the semi parked on the side of the road, to be hoisted 40 or 50 metres into the sky, doesn’t know how to do his job properly, and they slip out half way up?

Bus drivers need a license? Outrageous, what is all this red tape that’s just making it hard for honest, hard working people to make a living these days? Just let them use their common sense. I’m sure nothing will go wrong…

Dogging … no mention of Joel Monaghan, though there’s another thread running about him.

davo101 said :

undertaking dogging work in the ACTsnigger

Um… woof?

nothingtoprove7:57 pm 18 Jan 12

cranky said :

Are constuction industry employees really so unaware of cause/effect & self preservation that they need such overwhelming governance? If the answer is yes, all the regulations in the world will not help these unfortunates.

Exactly! Most of these new “Safe Work Legislations” are more of a hindence and most times cause more unsafe work enviroments.

It’s amazing that we ever get through a weekend without severe injury. What with ladders, lawn mowers, whipper snippers, hedge clippers etc. And that’s without the brown snakes and funnelwebs 🙂

Are constuction industry employees really so unaware of cause/effect & self preservation that they need such overwhelming governance? If the answer is yes, all the regulations in the world will not help these unfortunates.

undertaking dogging work in the ACTsnigger

screaming banshee5:32 pm 18 Jan 12

Not just his opinion.

Perhaps you’d like to take over the construction industry and suggest that everyone just use common sense.

Perhaps we could have common sense tuesdays where you only obey the safety precautions you think apply to you.

Wake up to yourself!

MelonHead said :

Your attempt at humour is a fail.

Your opinion.
And my opinion is that you’re overdramatise things and put read tape where it is unnecessary.

Let’s put it this way, even shopping bags are dangerous given some people would be happy to overload it with heavy items that would be dangerous if dropped from some height (think people living in apartments above ground floor who have to slug it up the stairs with their weekly shopping).

But most people use common sense. Better yet, if something is hovering off the ground close to you looks dangerous, stay the hell out of the way. Anything that is a grey area should be address through training.

A license?? Legislation??

For pete’s sakes, it’s too dangerous to even walk on the street! Let’s regulate and have everyone require a license to walk!

Never heard of such dribble.

So, Jivrashia, you don’t seem to understand the difference between filling a shopping bag to breaking point, (let’s not cry over spilt milk), and several tons of building material falling from six storeys on to a public thoroughfare. Both events are caused by poor selection of lifting materials, but only one is more likely to severely alter the lives of passersby.

Your attempt at humour is a fail.

The Regulation defines ‘shopping’ as the application of lifting techniques, including the selection and inspection of shopping bags, to safely carry a load.

“For example, this would include activity that involved the carrying of grocery from supermarkets when carry bags are used to lift a load of grocery to facilitate their movement from the shop to their car,” Mr McCormick continued.

Mr McCormick reminded local shoppers that the holding of some form of ‘shopping experience’ is insufficient to meet the requirements of the law. “ShopSafe ACT has received a number of enquiries in recent months regarding partial shopping knowledge.

Retailers and shoppers should be aware that a full shopping licence is required for this kind of work to be undertaken.

“If retailers and shoppers are unsure if the course they are attending will meet shopping requirements, they should contact ShopSafe ACT and check that the licence will be compliant with the legislation. This will save them a lot of time and money in the long run, on top of their 8c petrol discount,” concluded Mr McCormick.

If you have an enquiry regarding your shopping licence, contact ShopSafe ACT on 6207 xxxx.

Never heard of such dribble….

Johnboy, I don’t suppose you’ve heard this old crane driver’s joke which goes like this:

Q How do you stop a swinging load on a construction site?

A Hit a dogman in the head.

I’m told that the BLF, who used to represent dogmen and steelfixers before Bob Hawke deregistered the union, didn’t find the joke nearly as funny as the crane drivers did.

switch said :

Sometimes I think you have too much time on your hands, Johnboy.

It’s his brain I’m worried about.

Sometimes I think you have too much time on your hands, Johnboy.

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