The Fair Work Commission has upheld an Australia Post HSR’s provisional improvement notice (PIN) after agreeing that the employer breached its WHS duty to eliminate the need for employees to manually handle large numbers of items at a customer’s site.
At the beginning of the year the HSR issue a PIN to Australia Post requiring the employer to improve manual handling practices at Toronto NSW and issued a second PIN requiring the elimination of manual handling risks when collecting parcels at a customer site in Newcastle NSW.
It was alleged that the employer was breaching its duty of care by requiring van drivers to manually load a large number of car parts weighing up to 16kg during twice-a-day pickups from the customer. The notice required Australia Post to provide a truck service with the customer to load parcels into cages and the Australia Post employees using a forklift or similar equipment to load the cages into the truck. The customer’s infrastructure was equipped to accommodate the proposal.
Australia Post challenged the two PINs, and a ComCare Inspector agreed, cancelling the PINs. The HSR applied to the FWC for an external review of the second PIN, where it was agreed that using cages and trucks was a reasonably practicable step to eliminate the risk presented by manually handling a large volume of heavy parcels.
This topic has relevance for HSRs in Victoria, where we occasionally see WorkSafe Inspectors asking HSRs to withdraw an issued PIN. As a general rule we do not recommend withdrawing a PIN as this leaves the HSR with no avenue for review.
If you and your DWG are confident that the PIN is valid and required, seek assistance from your union and speak with the inspector to explain your stance before they make a final decision. If the inspector insists that the PIN is not valid, then they can cancel it – which leaves you with the option of pursuing an appeal under Part 10 of the OHS Act. We strongly encourage you to seek union assistance.
Read more: Manual handling PIN for Aussie Post upheld