Sunday, April 28, 2024 is World Day for Safety and Health at Work (World Day) and Workers’ Memorial Day.
Safe Work Australia’s latest data shows that in 2022, 195 workers in Australia were fatally injured at work. This concerning statistic amplifies the importance of increasing awareness around work health and safety to prevent work-related injuries and fatalities.
The 2024 World Day theme set by the International Labour Organization (ILO) explores the ‘impacts of climate change on occupational safety and health’.
Changing weather patterns can create work health and safety (WHS) risks including heat stress, UV radiation, air pollution, major industrial accidents, extreme weather events, an increase in vector-borne diseases and increased exposure to chemicals, all matters of concern in the day-to-day working life of arborists.
The Australian Work Health and Safety Strategy sets a platform for delivering WHS improvements over the next decade, including on emerging issues like climate change and the green economy. This World Day and Worker’s Memorial Day, Safe Work Australia remains committed to achieving its vision of safe and healthy work for all.
Accompanying World Day, the International Trade Union Confederation’s (ITUC) theme for Workers’ Memorial Day 2024 is ‘climate risks for workers’.
Everyone is encouraged to recognise the importance of health and safety in the workplace by promoting World Day and acknowledging Workers’ Memorial Day on April 28, 2024.
Safe Work Australia has developed a range of co-brandable resources available for use in the workplace, including a poster, desktop background and social-media tile. There is also a range of practical resources about how to stay safe when working in severe weather.
For more information and to download resources, go to the World Day for Safety and Health at Work and Workers’ Memorial Day web page.
