Awards open for improving women's safety at work

If you have an initiative that shows how you can contribute to the health and safety of women working in South Australia, SafeWork SA would like to hear from you.

Entrants have the opportunity of winning $20,000 in the 2016 Augusta Zadow Awards, which were officially launched in Adelaide by Senator Penny Wong.

Entries can involve details of an initiative to solve a work health and safety problem or a project aimed at significantly improving the health and safety of women at work through research or further education.

“The awards celebrate the extraordinary achievements of Augusta Zadow, a tenacious advocate for women’s rights in the workplace, by providing the opportunity to further improve the lives of women working in South Australia,” said SafeWork SA Executive Director Marie Boland.

“This year we have simplified the selection criteria to encourage even more new and fresh ideas.”

According to Safe Work Australia, women have a 27% higher frequency rate of injury than their male counterparts, on a per hour basis.

Boland said these statistics further support the need for greater awareness of safe work practices and additional support for women in the workplace.

“We encourage proposals from everyone — workers, volunteers, students, small business owners. If you think that you can make a difference to the safety of women at work, then let us know,” she said.

Last year’s winners included a project on the WHS risks for female social and community services workers who are required to sleep over at their workplaces as part of their job and a project to develop strategies to reduce workplace injuries for sonographers.

Applications for the 2016 Augusta Zadow Awards close on Friday 24 June 2016.

Further information is available at safework.sa.gov.au/aza.

Originally published here.