WorkSafe ACT, Master Builders partner with Canberra developers to tackle safety issues

Following two fatalities on Denman Prospect worksites last year, the new campaign has been launched to spread the safety message from land developers down the line to workers on site.

The partnership between WorkSafe ACT, Master Builders and three major developers of Canberra's newest suburbs - Ginninderry, Capital Airport Group and the Suburban Land Agency - will begin with a push for developers to increase communication with employees.

"We've partnered with major land developers to help us get the message directly to not only the house builders but also all of their workers, about the importance of safety," Master Builders ACT chief executive Michael Hopkins said.

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"The campaign will start initially with a communications focus to directly talk to the builders and their workers. Over time, we will add further elements such as specific training that people can undertake."

Mr Hopkins said there had been increased uptake of Master Builder's safety training since the WorkSafe crackdown, but added there was still a lot to be done.

"One of the big issues, we want to make sure we see better compliance with is around working safely at heights," he said.

"Particularly, as more of our homes become two-storey homes, working at height is a key issue."

The proper use of personal protective equipment and workers having access to proper safety procedures on site were also concerns.

"These things don't work effectively, unless every single person working on the site has that same commitment to safety," Mr Hopkins said.

WorkSafe ACT ramped-up inspections of Canberra's greenfield developments in September, in an attempt to stamp out unsafe practices.

Dubbed 'Operation Safe Prospect', the mission led by ACT Work Health and Safety Commissioner Jacqueline Agius, was named to pay tribute to the two workers who died in separate incidents last year

Ms Agius said the latest campaign was a step in the right direction to improve culture and working conditions on construction sites.

"WorkSafe ACT welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with industry to help keep construction workers safe," she said.

"Through Operation Safe Prospect, we have called for industry to take action and improve the safety culture at residential construction sites across the territory."

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