SafeWork NSW has successfully completed targeted compliance checks in the Wilton and Wollondilly area following a Builders Breakfast and Toolbox Talk aimed at boosting awareness around safety in the construction sector.
The construction industry is faced with an abundance of risks and hazards with the most common causes of serious injury or death on construction sites including falls from height and mobile plant.
In the last 12 months, over 2229 workplace incidents including 13 fatalities were reported to SafeWork NSW from the construction industry.
To address these hazards, SafeWork NSW Inspectors conducted proactive visits on Thursday 11 June across 20 residential, civil, commercial and infrastructure construction sites in the Wilton and Wollondilly area.
Inspectors checked that people and plant, such as earthmoving equipment and vehicles, were separated wherever possible.
The compliance operation resulted in the issuing of 14 notices for non-compliance, comprising of nine improvement notices, five prohibition notices and the completion 40 verification checklists being conducted for falls from height, mobile plant and psychosocial concerns.
While many worksites are doing the right thing, the blitz highlighted that too many workers on construction sites are still being put at risk due to factors such as poor job planning, a lack of site supervision and inadequate preventative measures such as edge protection for working from heights.
Before conducting the compliance checks, SafeWork NSW Inspectors gathered with 80 participants from varied industries including residential, commercial, and civil construction at Wilton to host SafeWork NSW’s Builders Breakfast and Toolbox Talk.
SafeWork NSW Inspectors discussed the key harms in SafeWork NSW’s ‘Regulatory Approach and Regulatory Priorities for 2025-26’ including:
- Falls from heights
- Managing psychosocial risks
- Injuries caused by mobile plant/ vehicles
- Exposure to hazardous substances (silica, asbestos).
They also focused on the role that women play in the construction industry and how to continue to provide safe workplaces that support those workers.
Inspectors prioritised the management of psychosocial risks at the Toolbox Talk by speaking with workers, businesses and Health and Safety Representatives about psychological health and safety practises and providing advice and resources to on how to manage these risks.
Psychosocial hazards can include harassment, bullying, work pressure, exposure to a traumatic event, violence and hazardous physical working environments.
The Builders Breakfast and Toolbox Talk was opened to all trades, site supervisors, and anyone else involved in undertaking construction work in the Wilton and Wollondilly area.
Minister for Work Health and Safety Sophie Cotsis attended the event to speak to businesses and workers alongside SafeWork NSW Inspectors about their duties and obligations to maintain safe workplaces.
Eligible participants who attended the event could also apply for the $1,000 SafeWork NSW Small Business Rebate to spend on a range of safety improvements including platform ladders, edge protection equipment and more.
