SafeWork SA Urges Construction Workers To Prioritise Safety Ahead Of Christmas Period

South Australian builders and contractors are being urged to prioritise safety over busy workloads ahead of the Christmas shutdown period.

The SafeWork SA warning comes after two incidents in the last few weeks which were “notifiable dangerous incidents” -including a collapse of single prop formwork systems and two separate electric shock incidents.

Stay up-to-date on the latest news with The South Australia Briefing - keeping you in the loop with news as it hits:

SafeWork SA Executive Director Martyn Campbell said safety at work affected workers, their families, businesses and the wider community.

“Heavy workloads and tight timelines are no excuse for corner cutting, especially when it impacts safety,” he said.

“Everyone enjoys the chance to take some time off over Christmas, so it is vital that we stay safe in the busy weeks before the break.”

Between October 1 and November 14, there were 39 notifiable construction industry incidents reported to SafeWork SA – a 20 per cent increase in near misses and serious injuries compared with the average weekly incident rate for the first nine months of 2021.

The incidents also led to 12 workers hospitalised.

From The Saturday Paper and LiSTNR comes Post: News in Five, a daily podcast bringing you the top five news headlines in just five minutes. Hear it on the LiSTNR app today.