New Zealand’s employment legislation still needs work in the areas of remedies and punishments involving dismissal law, according to an expert in employment and industrial relations. [ + ]

Andreas Cebulla, a senior research fellow at the Flinders-based National Institute of Labour Studies, has begun a year-long study to determine whether low apprenticeship wages are forcing Australian tradies into homelessness and housing instability. [ + ]

GAAM Emergency Products has been awarded the contract to manufacture and supply 127 MK300 diesel powered pumps for the Country Fire Authority (CFA). [ + ]

WorkCover NSW is using National Farm Safety Week to urge all NSW farmers to think about work health and safety on their farms. [ + ]

A Kilmore man has died in hospital after falling 2.4 m at a housing development at Doreen last week. WorkSafe Victoria is investigating the incident which happened at a site in Midland Road, Doreen. [ + ]

The Fair Work Ombudsman will audit up to 250 specialised food retailers in South Australia over the next four months as part of a new education and compliance campaign. [ + ]

WorkSafe Victoria has kicked off a year-long safety campaign to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities occurring on farms. [ + ]

The public comment period for the National Guidance Material for Working Safely on the Waterfront closes on Friday, 10 August 2012. [ + ]

An osteopath has been convicted and fined $16,000 after pleading guilty to fraudulently obtaining payments from WorkSafe. [ + ]

Energex has renewed its partnership with Queensland Rural Fire Service through a $75,000 sponsorship of vital emergency equipment. [ + ]

Warrnambool’s 1300 Temp Fence has won four tickets to one of Victoria’s premier motorcycle events after competing alongside more than 90 teams who took part in WorkSafe’s Top Tradie competition over the past six-weeks. [ + ]

Tegra Australia, a concrete manufacturing business that provides premix concrete and materials to construction sites throughout NSW, has been fined $80,000 and ordered to pay WorkCover’s legal costs after a 29-year-old man almost died when he inhaled toxic fumes. [ + ]

Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Bill Shorten and Minister for Employment Participation Kate Ellis have announced a $3.9 million investment for Tasmanian forestry workers facing redundancy to help them access employment and training. [ + ]

Two of Australia’s largest construction companies, John Holland and Thiess, have entered into a $225,000 enforceable undertaking after two concrete sound barrier panels, each weighing 11.3 tonnes, fell from a contractor’s truck near the Eastlink tollway project in Ringwood, Melbourne, in October 2006. [ + ]

The Fair Work Ombudsman has launched a prosecution against a security company, alleging it underpaid 19 employees more than $21,000. [ + ]