Queensland Rail's record fine over Mindi deaths

Re: Queensland Rail's record fine over Mindi deaths

Date posted: 02/12/2009 14:55 - Eane Watson

George,

I agree. For an organisation like QR such a penalty is a pittance, and indeed risks reducing human life and suffering to a dollar sign.

Consequences for actions (or inactions as the case may be) need to be able to be developed  and applied on an individual basis, and tailored to the individual or corporation to ensure relevance and effectiveness - a blanket model of financial penalty, jail time (and perhaps an enforceable undertaking) is potentially irrelevant and at worst ineffective in preventing recurrence.

 Eane

Re: Queensland Rail's record fine over Mindi deaths

Date posted: 03/12/2009 16:22 - Stephen Woolger

I don't think the fine is the issue as I am sure a civil case will follow.  What we should be focussing on is how we encourage an improvement in the systems within these organisations and ensuring compliance with these.  This case is just one of many where the failures in the systems have actually caused a fatal incident.  By my estimates that means there are still many near hits / misses that could also result in similar circumstances.  As rightly indicated for a large organsiation the level of fine may be small but the associated work to bring about a change in the system and associated controls and any civil case will all add up.

Stephen

Re: Queensland Rail's record fine over Mindi deaths

Date posted: 10/12/2009 22:53 - kevyarra

kevin

 As a QR employee (x safety rep) in the Rolling Stock mainentance, I  personally believe Du Pont is a waste of money.   Yes, changes have been implemented in the workplace although under OH&S laws these would need to be done any way, for example -  ( JSA ,Confined Space, Hot Work etc).  Basically since Du Pont  we have to wear safety glasses (compulsory)  and do a Take 2 before starting any job ( not enforsed) .  We also have a Zero harm policy (Du Pont)  this gives the managers permission to address all the easy targets and pat each other on the back whilst ignoring the major issues such as  working in the sun, aspestos buildings, gaps between locos on maintance platforms, noise, fumes, poor planning,  poor leadership low moral, the list is huge!

My personal experience with Du Pont is it is dissapointing as it is management oriented.   $250 million could go a long way to improving the work place if only managers would get out of there ivory towers and off there lazy arses and consult with the people who work in the areas.   These need improving,  ie;  safety committees,  tool box meetings,  be proactive,  interact with the working person (most of us dont bite!)  Some of us even play golf !!  The old days of us and them has  long gone! Managers get over yourselves,  work with us and we will all go a long way in safety improvements.

Re: Queensland Rail's record fine over Mindi deaths

Date posted: 17/12/2009 11:22 - Nicole Prince

Hi Kevin,

Have read through all of the comments and your posting on your website.  The fine for QR was know where large enough for the repeat occurrence of the identified system failures that exist within not only QR, but other rail organisations. 

 There was a comment that the rail industry is tightly regulated.  This is not the case - especially in Victoria.  The Govt deliberately wrote the Act so that the regulator did not have the powers that WorkSafe do and they did not want Worksafe to have any jurisdiction over the rail industry.  The Vic Railways maybe "privately owned", but is it really "privately owned" when the Govt has written the contract, set the standards, bonus' and has to approve the amount of spending on maintenance?  

Rail Safety is actually not that different to any other safety.  It is all system based.  It is only seen to be different and is discussed with "smoke and mirrors" by those who have always worked in the Railways.  Once you are working within these organisations you soon realise that they are at least 20 years behind where the construction industry is. They have rules that were written by exception not as part of a good system.

Companies need to stop spending so much money on the Du Pont system (which is always wheeled out as the be all and end all) that they have just pulled off a shelf, failed to tailor to there own needs and culture.  The CEO's don't want to spend the time looking for alternatives as this band aid will fix the problem.