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We’ve heard all sorts of myths and misconceptions when it comes to health and safety. We’re here to debunk some of the more common ones we hear.

H&S admin takes too long on site, it slows us down.

Back in the day we’d agree with you on this one, however times have changed. With the HazardCo system you can complete your health and safety quickly and easily.

Did you know our members reduced health and safety admin time by 50% when they switched from paper systems? Our easy to use app will guide you through what needs to be done to ensure you’re on top of your health and safety.

I’m not going to have an incident on site, I’ve been doing this for years and I’m not silly.

Even if you haven’t had an incident on-site for a long time, it doesn’t mean you never will. In fact, the more often you’re exposed to a risk, the less your brain perceives the significance of the risk, although the level of risk has not changed.

Project sites are constantly changing which could mean new hazards come up as the build progresses. It’s important to regularly review your health and safety measures on-site and continually make changes where necessary.

HazardCo helps you to stay on top of your health and safety at all times. Learn about the common incidents on-site and how to reduce the risk.

I don’t need to worry about health and safety because I’m a small builder, the Regulators have bigger fish to fry.

The role of WorkSafe and  SafeWork is to reduce workplace harm. Stats show there continues to be a large number of incidents happening on residential building sites, which is why it continues to be a focus of WorkSafe and SafeWork. WorkSafe and SafeWork often issue safety alerts on recent issues and focus areas, such as height related incidents on resi sites.  

It’s important to focus on health and safety not just because of the regulators, but because it can keep your workers and other people safe on-site. 

Staying on top of your health and safety can mean:

• Getting everyone home safe at the end of every day 
• A happier and healthier workplace
• Less incidents, which means less worker injury claims,  costs to your business and less downtime investigating and resolving HS issues

It’s fine for me to use the same safety plan on all my sites because the houses I build are really similar.

A WHS Management Plan / Health and Safety Coordination plan must be specific to the site.

Sure, some key hazards and risks will be the same across projects, therefore certain content may remain the same from project to project however it’s essential that a site specific plan is reviewed and amended for each project.

It’s up to the contractors and subbies on site to make sure they are safe, it’s not up to me as the building company.

Construction work requires many businesses to be involved in the same task or activity (for example suppliers, contractors, and building owners).

There may be multiple people or businesses that are responsible for the duty of care to workers and others on-site. Therefore, more than one person can have the same duty. When it comes to sharing certain duties, everyone is responsible.

If you’re a Principal Contractor, you also have additional health and safety obligations relating to the project site. Find out more about sharing health and safety duties in construction.

I don’t need to report or investigate near misses, as nothing happened.

Near misses should be considered the same as an incident. But often they aren’t. We often find that near misses are very rarely reported, and actually brushed off. 

Near misses are just as dangerous as actual incidents. If you’ve had a near miss, you might have got lucky but someone else might not. Treat near misses as a free learning tool to review your processes and the controls in place to prevent more serious incidents from occurring.

No matter how big or small, report all near misses and incidents so you can all learn from them.

Don’t take near misses lightly. Report the incident as soon as it happens with the HazardCo App. Read more about the importance of reporting and recording near misses 

I don’t need to worry about managing ‘Health’ when it comes to Health and Safety on-site.

Health can often be overlooked in the construction industry, but it’s a big contributor to time off work and workers compensation costs across Australia. Both physical and mental health risks can significantly impact the health of your workers and negatively impact your business if not taken seriously.

Get the best from your team and work safer and healthier. Find out more about the importance of looking after you and your worker’s physical and mental health.