Workplace Health and Safety Strategy for New Zealand to 2015

Rautaki mō te Haumaru me te Hauora o te Wāhi Mahi mō Aotearoa ki te 2015

Snapshot of Progress 2008/09

Highlights for year four of the Strategy in action

  • The Leaders in Health and Safety Summit, held in Wellington in August 2008 - an opportunity for more than 120 industry leaders to discuss building a New Zealand workplace safety culture.
  • The Safety Culture, Leadership and Forestry pilot project, which validated safety culture as a practical and workable concept for New Zealand businesses.
  • The establishment of a high-level, cross-industry group of chief executives committed to promoting health and safety.
  • The expansion of the professional association of health and safety practitioners.
  • The progress of the health and safety self-regulation system, Operate Safe.
  • The operational review of the Strategy, and the Workplace Health and Safety Council.
  • Joint agency initiatives including the Hazardous Substances workshops, the Gateway programme, New Zealand's Future Fleet programme and the Commercial Driver campaign.
  • The success stories of individual businesses celebrated at the Safeguard Health and Safety Awards 2009.

These highlights are described in more detail in this report under each outcome area, and further activities are outlined in the Action Reporting Template in Appendix 1.

Background

The Workplace Health and Safety Strategy for New Zealand to 2015 was launched in July 2005. The Strategy is a long-term government initiative designed to reduce New Zealand's work toll and enhance the productivity of New Zealand businesses by lifting workplace health and safety performance.

The Strategy's objectives are to:

  • raise awareness about workplace health and safety
  • coordinate and prioritise workplace health and safety activities across stakeholders
  • improve the infrastructure that supports workplace health and safety.

The Strategy has a vision - Healthy People in Safe and Productive Workplaces - and identifies three interconnected outcomes:

  1. Government Leadership and Practices
  2. Preventive Workplace Cultures
  3. Industry Leadership and Community Engagement.

This Snapshot of Progress highlights achievements during the 2008/09 year. The Action Reporting Template in Appendix 1 sets out all the activity undertaken in more detail.

The Department of Labour undertook a planned operational review of the Strategy during the year to ensure that the right priorities are set, industry and communities are committed and the effectiveness of the Strategy is increased.

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