NGMW536

Individual / Organisation name:PaT Fitzpatrick

What state/territory: Vic

Review of the National Guidance Material for Working Safely on the Waterfront

Public Comment Response Form

Complete and submit this form by5pmAESTfriDAY 10 AUGUSt 2012to

Comments on content of the national guidance material
Section/page no. / Comment
Comments on additional issues identified in section 4.2 of the Discussion Paper
Section/page no. / Comment
Hatchmen / Re role of the Hatchman: The Hatchman's role is an integral part for the continued safe operation of loading and unloading of vessels in Australia. Every stevedore in Australia is continually concerned for their safety and well being while unloading vessels, It is an incredibly dangerous job even in its current format. Removing another individual from this process may have serious safety consequences for staff working in this environment. We need to continually improve safety procedures and equipment for these duties to reduce the number of serious accidents and near misses, not increase the chances of serious accidents and near misses by removing Hatchman. There have been many examples while we have been working in the hull of a vessel or on the wharf, that the Hatchman's extra set of eyes at the deck level of a vessel have been the only thing that has avoided injury or the possibility of dangerous situations for staff and ships crew. One such example was a hatchman identified a sling was failing [breaking/tearing] as a load of steel was traveling out of the hatch of a ship as it was passing over the deck.
Stevedoring qualifications / Should the guidance material refer to the qualifications (Cert II, Cert III and Cert IV in Stevedoring) that have been developed for the stevedoring industry?
Yes absolutely
Safety Induction skill-set / Should the newly developed stevedoring ‘safety skill-set’ be used to underpin safety inductions?
Safety inductions are very important for new employees.
Use of checklists / Should the safety checklists, which set out examples of the types of hazards, and acceptable/unacceptable ways of handling those hazards, be maintained in the guidance material?
Checklists are a great way of maintaining safety and equipment
Comments on the implementation of the national guidance material in each jurisdiction which may have included launches, information and training sessions, and whether it has been useful in the workplace as a resource for improving safety practices.
Section/page no. / Comment
Other comments