The federal government has said that because the rate of deaths at workplaces hasn't changed in the ACT since the introduction of industrial manslaughter laws, it won't support a move for a national version of the legislation.
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The government handed down its response to the Senate inquiry into the prevention, investigation and prosecution of workplace deaths on Thursday, and while the response didn't reject the recommendation for a nationally consistent offence, it didn't commit to the measure either.
The response said the likelihood of an offence being used to prosecute a death was "questionable based on the ACT experience".
"There is also no evidence that the ACT's industrial manslaughter laws have resulted in fewer workplace deaths," the response said.
"The number of workplace deaths in the ACT has remained constant since 2003 when industrial manslaughter offences were introduced."
The response noted that no one has been prosecuted under the offence since it was introduced, but prosecutions for workplace deaths had been made under general manslaughter provisions.
The only other jurisdiction to have industrial manslaughter laws is Queensland, where they were introduced in 2017. The federal government response said it was too early to measure the efficacy of these laws.
ACT Minister for Workplace Safety Rachel Stephen-Smith labelled the federal government's response short-sighted, while acknowledging that the ACT laws could be improved.
"In its evidence to the Senate committee inquiry, the ACT government proposed that the Queensland model be adopted as part of the national harmonised laws. We recognise that, while we were the first jurisdiction to introduce industrial manslaughter offences, there are more contemporary models available," Ms Stephen-Smith said.
"The federal government’s response is short-sighted, and we will continue to advocate for industrial manslaughter to be included in the model work health and safety laws through Safe Work Australia."
Kay Catanzariti, whose son Ben was killed when a concrete pouring boom crashed on him on a Kingston Foreshore construction site in 2012, is disappointed at both the government's response and the fact the document was released in the days leading up to Christmas.
A case against the managers of the site collapsed in 2016, with no one found responsible for Ben's death.
Mrs Catanzariti said it felt like the response had been "swept under the rug", and the timing of the release was another let-down for families of those who had died at work at an already difficult time of year.
Ducking the recommendation for nationally consistent industrial manslaughter laws was "an insult to the families", she said, as it failed to introduce sufficient deterrent for unsafe work practices.
"Everything the government does, whether Liberal or Labor, everything involves people, workers, so if we don't protect workers and make the deterrent then climate change, immigration, everything else - is worth nothing if you haven't got workers," Mrs Catanzariti said.
A group of 17 families who had travelled to Canberra this year to advocate for change received personal emails from Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O'Dwyer on Thursday night after the response was handed down, but the response from the department and Ms O'Dwyer had mostly been disappointing, Mrs Catanzariti said.
She said she would continue to fight for change with other families in the new year, and hoped that families had a peaceful Christmas making memories with their loved ones.
