Hi Renata – a member of my DWG stores their insulin in a communal work refrigerator. An unknown person removed the medication from the refrigerator without consultation. What should our employer be doing to ensure that medication can be safely stored at work?
This is a really concerning situation. The removal of someone's insulin without their knowledge or consent raises several concerns:
- Health & safety risk — Insulin is a life-sustaining medication. Removing it could create a serious health emergency.
- Duty of care — Employers have a duty to provide and maintain a safe working environment, which includes ensuring personal medication can be stored securely.
- Consultation — Employers should consult with employees about the adequacy of workplace facilities.
Under both Victorian and Commonwealth OHS laws, employers have obligations to provide accessible, secure storage for employees' personal property, including personal medication. Personal medication (like insulin) is explicitly recognised as a personal item that employers must ensure can be stored securely at the workplace. In the case of medications, what constitutes safe and secure storage will be a matter for case-by-case assessment. You can read more about personal storage in WorkSafe’s publication Compliance code: Workplace facilities and the working environment.
For your employer to fulfil their duty they should:
- Investigate the incident to identify why the medication was removed. Was it an accident or more malicious?; and
- Consult with the affected worker and their HSR under35 of the OHS Act about controls to be implemented to ensure medication can be stored securely onsite. This includes considering:
- The adequacy of workplace facilities.
- Changes to storage arrangements.
- Resolving issues like the removal of personal medication. Information, training and/or signage could be used to control the risk of inadvertent removal of medications.
If the employer fails to act to resolve this issue as the HSR you have powers to escalate the matter; I recommend contacting your union for support.
Your DWG member may also have rights under anti-discrimination and/or equal opportunity laws, as diabetes is a medical condition and the worker may be entitled to reasonable adjustments in the workplace.
If you have any questions about OHS we encourage to fill out an Ask Renata query and one of our officials will get back to you shortly. Alternatively give Ask Renatabot a try!