Working 45 or more hours in a week is linked to a heightened risk of diabetes in women, finds an observational study published online in the journal BMJ Diabetes Research & Care No such heightened risk was found among women working 30 to 40 hours a week, the findings show, prompting the researchers to suggest that sticking to this total might help curb the risk of the disease. Continue →

A young boy’s lucky escape after he fell from a quad bike and was run over by the equipment being towed behind it serves as a timely reminder for farmers and families to ensure they are keeping kids off adult-sized quad bikes, as riders or passengers WorkSafe says Small farming company Greystone Holdings Limited was sentenced in Wellington District Court after an incident that occurred in July 2016, when a six-year-old was visiting the 60-acre farm owned by his grandparents during school holidays. Continue →

New Zealand’s first national, online register of verified workplace health and safety professionals has opened for business   The HASANZ Register of Workplace Health and Safety Professionals (HASANZ Register) www.register.hasanz.org.nz was officially launched in Wellington by WorkSafe New Zealand Chief Executive Nicole Rosie. Continue →

Applications for Site Safe scholarships are now open Each year, the Site Safe scholarships help the health and safety leaders of the future to jump start their careers by completing free higher-level training. Continue →

A Consumer NZ test of smoke alarms found ionisation-type smoke alarms performed so poorly retailers should pull them from the shelves Ionisation alarms give much less warning of smouldering fires, such as those caused by faulty electrical wiring, curtains draped over a heater, or a hot ember igniting upholstery foam, making it less likely you can get out of your home safely. Continue →

Hand tool safety tips are useful in every workplace – almost every job calls for their use, and healthy hands are necessary for every job People who work in warehouses, construction sites, or in industrial workplaces will likely use hand tools more frequently, but even office workers use scissors, box cutters, and utility knives. Continue →

A Manawatū farmer says his community wants easier access to a blood test for toxic chemicals from firefighting foam, but the Health Ministry is telling them not to bother according to RNZ News The groundwater around defence bases including Ōhakea in Manawatū have been contaminated with toxic and long-lasting firefighting foam chemicals. Continue →

A new study by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) has reviewed the risks to workers when opening fumigated shipping containers   The study identifies significant gaps in preventive measures and makes recommendations that should be implemented to improve the safety and health of workers. Continue →

An IPLEX G Lite industrial videoscope featuring powerful imaging capabilities and a small, rugged body has been launched by Olympus Lightweight and able to go almost anywhere, the IPLEX G Lite videoscope provides users working in challenging environments with a remote visual inspection tool that has the image quality and ease of use to get the job done. Continue →

Global hydraulics leader Enerpac says its Australasian service centres are getting an increasing incidence of maintenance and replacement claims for non-genuine lookalike cylinders that are brought to it to fix when they break down or wear out The problem – which is particularly acute in New Zealand, but also encountered in Australia – often costs the cylinders’ owner double when they lose production time with the defective item, then can’t get it fixed under Enerpac warranty, says Enerpac New Zealand Hydraulic Specialist Neville Stuart. Continue →