During 2003 the School of Physics took enormous strides to ensure
our OH&S documentation met the appropriate legislative standards.
Dr Galina Kaseko is employed by the School to develop its part of
a University wide OHS management system. Galina’s approach is
to make the bureaucratic process as simple and transparent as possible,
thereby helping busy staff and students to document their OH&S
compliance in the most efficient way. By the middle of the year, the
School, considered one of the more high risk areas within UNSW, was,
along with three other areas, selected for a university wide safety
audit conducted by WorkCover. Our hard work was recognised when the
School, and consequently UNSW, were able to achieve a satisfactory
standard in this audit.
Our OHS committee members are:
• Jack Cochrane, our chairperson
• Jon Everett, the School’s safety officer
• Krystyna Wilk, the radiation safety officer
• John Tann, general staff representative and also the laser
safety officer
• Pritipal Baweja, workshop representative
• John Storey, Head of School
• Martin Brauhart, representing CQCT
• Galina Kaseko
• Ra Inta, representing postgraduate students
• Justin Dinale, the undergraduate representative
Bob Starrett is now joined by Joji Conducto as a SECO, that empyreal
person with the hard hat who ensures safe and timely building evacuations.
There are trained First Aid officers in all teaching laboratories
and in six other places throughout the School.
So many of us now spend so much time in front of a computer monitor
that the OHS committee enthusiastically endorsed Ra’s idea
for ensuring that every postgraduate student has an ergonomic chair.
This was done by the simple but effective process of buying a bulk
order of chairs and providing them free of charge to the students.
As part of the School of Safety Science OHS auditing course, our
School took part in their training exercise for safety auditors.
We hope to make this a regular event in the future, as it provides
benefits to both sides.
A link to the School Safety Web site is now featured prominently
on the front page of Physics Web. This web page continues to expand
and contains School relevant information, forms, documents and links
to the UNSW OHS Management system.
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