The NSCA is accepting nominations for the National Safety Awards of Excellence. The awards are open to any Australian operating business, organisation, alliance or individual in the public or private sector with a workplace health and safety or environment initiative that complies with one of the seven categories. Nominations close 29 June 2012.

New Zealand has recently launched Best Practice Guidelines for Working at Height. The guidelines give clear, simple advice that will help bring down the death and injury toll from avoidable falls in the construction industry. [ + ]

Last week the NSW Minister for Finance and Services Greg Pearce announced a shake-up of the WorkCover Board to address the $4.1 billion deficit and implement a reform agenda following the outcomes of the Parliamentary inquiry. [ + ]

New South Wales miners from the Illawarra/Wollondilly and Hunter Valley regions were reconised at the 2012 NSW Minerals Council OHS Innovation Awards in front of around 550 of their peers. [ + ]

Protective solutions company Ansell has concluded its acquisition of the Trelleborg Protective Products (TPP) business. Ansell will operate the former Trelleborg business under the name Ansell Protective Solutions (APS), and as part of its Specialty Markets Global Business Unit. [ + ]

The former sole director of a retail company has been fined $11,000 after the Federal Magistrates Court found he presided over “seriously reckless” employment practices. [ + ]

Today's High Court decision on James Hardie Industries has been welcomed by Maurice Blackburn lawyers. The Court held that seven non-executive directors of James Hardie broke the law when they released a misleading statement to the Australian Stock Exchange in February 2001. [ + ]

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has instituted proceedings against Safety Compliance and three individuals related to the company. The company operates its business from Tweed Heads, NSW. [ + ]

Nominations for the 2012 WorkSafe Victoria Awards are now open, with WorkSafe calling on people and business that are ‘making a difference’ to enter. [ + ]

WorkSafe Victoria’s annual roadshow begins soon, with 19 metropolitan and country locations to be visited from 15 May to 19 June. [ + ]

The Department of Mines and Petroleum, Government of Western Australia, has issued a safety alert following two recent incidents where explosive items were left unaccounted for in underground elevated work platforms and charge baskets at mine sites. The explosives were only discovered some time later, after the equipment returned to the surface. In one case, welding work was carried out on the machinery in very close proximity to the explosives (boosters and a detonator) before they were discovered. [ + ]

Winners of the 7th annual Safe Work Australia Awards were announced at a ceremony held at Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday 26 April 2012. [ + ]

As part of an Australian Research Council Discovery Project, a report has been released analysing 284 sexual harassment complaints reported to all Australian, state and territory equal opportunity commissions. [ + ]

Carton finishers in Melbourne’s south could soon begin protected industrial action in an effort to defend a key entitlement under threat by their management. AMWU Print Division organiser Tony Piccolo said negotiations on a new collective agreement at Colorpak’s Mt Waverly site had broken down over the issue of sick leave entitlements - traditionally paid out upon redundancy. [ + ]

Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, an Australian law firm, has filed Federal Court action today on behalf of sacked Toyota workers, to reinstate a number of those it claims were subjected to targeted and unlawful discrimination in the recent job cuts at the car company's Altona plant. [ + ]