is this a OH&S / Workcover Issue??

[XRSIKS]

Originally Posted by XW_GS

The newsagency/post office at the end of my street, has his 2 kids, one a newborn and the other a couple of years old, staying behind the counter whilst mum dad and a few workers are at it running the shop.

Now the baby is in a bouncer and the toddler runs around playing with his toys.

Now remember it is a Newsagency/Post office set up.

i once sent off a 20 kilo Clevo manifold via the newsagency... basically i place the item onto the counter, he picks it up weighs it, labels it and then stacks it behind the counter...yes where the kids are...

1. Stock or post items can easily fall onto the kids
2. there are 3 to 4 people working in there most times, easy to step on a kid on the floor.

A friend said there is nothing you can do about it, i say crap.

Is there a law against this happening in a work place environment?

The way i see it, You dont work there..... and if they own the place, and it's their choice *shrugs*

at work we'd call that a bear trap..... One of the many places people do not recommend you dont step :P

[aussiblue]

It's also probably a "generational thing". I am sure my parents cared for me but the risks I was exposed to as a child on a farm in the 50's were significantly less than my father faced either as a child on a farm in the 20's or as a youth at the front line in WWII.

I wouldn't expose my child to these sort of risks but future generations may have even greater safety awareness and higher standards and question some of the risks we are probably unconsciously exposing our children too now. I suspect, like the couple I observe with baby on the counter, the people involved are immigrant families coming from places with lower awareness of such safety issues and the potential risks for their children. It not that they don't care for their children they have just not been exposed to the same safety awareness environment we have grown up with or into.

[Pinch]

Thats a fair call blue. Your argument about generational awareness seems pretty sound. Basically when my mates and I were kids we were mucking around down the bush or the river with pretty much no restrictions, only to be home before dark. This was the norm. These days it seems a lot more structured and more consideration is given to potential consequences and none of my many friends who are parents extend the same kind of lattitude to their children.

[xtremerus]

[QUOTE=XW_GS]because i could.......

and thanks flappist

i must remind myself not to add gravity in a heavy parcel...incase the guy behind the counter drops it on his kid, or the guy in the van drops it on his foot, or the worker in the sorting area picks it up incorrectly and hurts his back.... most of you are right.....

why should i care ???

but most of you must have read my opening message incorrectly or it must have read wrongly...

i really dont give half a rats **** how he runs his business..

i was just concerned about the young ones

i will feel sorry for the young one if he (god forbid) gets seriously hurt but hey its his fathers way.

Im not dobbing anyone in to any authority,not my thing, i was just stating that it must be lawfully wrong to have a kid in a potentially dangerous environment.

The most dangerous place for a kid is not the workplace, but the kids own home. Think about it.

[GT69]

[QUOTE=xtremerus]

Originally Posted by XW_GS

because i could.......

and thanks flappist

i must remind myself not to add gravity in a heavy parcel...incase the guy behind the counter drops it on his kid, or the guy in the van drops it on his foot, or the worker in the sorting area picks it up incorrectly and hurts his back.... most of you are right.....

why should i care ???

but most of you must have read my opening message incorrectly or it must have read wrongly...

i really dont give half a rats **** how he runs his business..

i was just concerned about the young ones

i will feel sorry for the young one if he (god forbid) gets seriously hurt but hey its his fathers way.

Im not dobbing anyone in to any authority,not my thing, i was just stating that it must be lawfully wrong to have a kid in a potentially dangerous environment.

The most dangerous place for a kid is not the workplace, but the kids own home. Think about it.

That's only because there's a higher percentage of kids at home than in workplaces. If only you could get the stats on some third world sweat shop factory injury stats, then compare it to home life.

Yes i no that's not the point, but people make the counter point as if nothing in any workplace can be dangerous.

You had an observation and asked the question, that's what forums are all about mate. Whether you intended dobbing them in or not, people have their own perceptions and when asked they will give their opinion, some louder than others

[XW_GS]

Originally Posted by GT69

You had an observation and asked the question, that's what forums are all about mate. Whether you intended dobbing them in or not, people have their own perceptions and when asked they will give their opinion, some louder than others

Thanks for clearing that up for me :hihi:

[FGII-XR6]

I would have an issue with a toddler behind the counter in a post office , not from the OH&S point of view but if i post something, I wouldn't be impressed if a 2year old decided to play with the parcel. lets face it at that age they are into everything
this is supposed to be a professional post office where all care is thaken to look after your parcels and that cant happen with a toddler around

[flappist]

You know this whole being a pillar of the community and trying to run other peoples lives is a great idea.

From now on every time I see a post or signature on AFF where it is possible that someones mods make their car too loud or not comply with emission laws or whatever, I think I will track down who they are and write a formal complaint to their local police cc harold scruby.

After all I am just making a safer and cleaner Australia.....for the kids....it is all for the kids.

I was brought up with the idea that dobbing was wrong. I suspect it may have come from all of the murders and evil deeds done by groups like the Nazis who would have had no power whatsoever if it was not for all the do gooders.......

[RG]

Originally Posted by flappist

You know this whole being a pillar of the community and trying to run other peoples lives is a great idea.

From now on every time I see a post or signature on AFF where it is possible that someones mods make their car too loud or not comply with emission laws or whatever, I think I will track down who they are and write a formal complaint to their local police cc harold scruby.

After all I am just making a safer and cleaner Australia.....for the kids....it is all for the kids.

I was brought up with the idea that dobbing was wrong. I suspect it may have come from all of the murders and evil deeds done by groups like the Nazis who would have had no power whatsoever if it was not for all the do gooders.......

Well then I had better report you to the relevant firearm authorities and also to the RSPCA. Arming bears surely can't be safe or legal.

[flappist]

Originally Posted by RG

Well then I had better report you to the relevant firearm authorities and also to the RSPCA. Arming bears surely can't be safe or legal.

That is a blatant breech of the T&C.

Comments concerning species will not be tolerated you...you... YOU BEARIST.....

[cob115]

Originally Posted by flappist

You know this whole being a pillar of the community and trying to run other peoples lives is a great idea.

From now on every time I see a post or signature on AFF where it is possible that someones mods make their car too loud or not comply with emission laws or whatever, I think I will track down who they are and write a formal complaint to their local police cc harold scruby.

After all I am just making a safer and cleaner Australia.....for the kids....it is all for the kids.

I was brought up with the idea that dobbing was wrong. I suspect it may have come from all of the murders and evil deeds done by groups like the Nazis who would have had no power whatsoever if it was not for all the do gooders.......

: : here here well said !!some people just like to complain bout other people for the sake of it

[RG]

Originally Posted by flappist

That is a blatant breech of the T&C.

Comments concerning species will not be tolerated you...you... YOU BEARIST.....

Breach, not breech

I am picky this morning.

[OLDFORDNUT]

My post office has big metal cages on wheels that the parcels all go into,nothing is stacked on the floor,if he had his kids in there behind counter i would not mind,but as for little kids standing on counter ,well id just comment to parent that if they fall they will get badly hurt and leave it at that,i dont want to interfere in others lives but if child was hurt and id not tried to warn them i would feel guilty for not trying to warn them,you just have to be a bit tactfull how you say it.

[falconboy]

I agree with B_mobile, have a quiet word to them, but they might get defensive and you might not get far, so better still, send them a (nice) letter outlining your concerns and maybe make a few suggestions on how they store the goods, where they allow the kids to play in the shop etc and suggest that the letter is instead of contacting the authorities. I'm sure they aren't purposely putting their kids at risk, they probably aren't aware of what you are, since they are hard at work.

Then keep an eye on the place, wander in and browse the playboy stand or whatever and see how the kids are going. Only then, if you find it still doesn't seem right contact authorities, but I'm pretty sure they will take your comments on board.

[Work Horse]

I'm sorry, as entertaining as the views of knee-jerk conservatives with really thick rose coloured glasses are, I have to call "Godwin's Law" on this thread.

[Wally]

Whenever someone appoints themself as the social conscience of the population, a fracas is sure to follow.

How many degrees of site safety do we need before all work stops? Well I seem to recall a few members here are in the construction industry and know that answer, in the form of the unions using safety issues to close sites while EBAs and no ticket no start requirements are in negotiation.

A business can wrap itself up in a OH&S/WHS manual, work method statements, MSDS', AS/NZ9000, but at the end of the day, food on the table and a roof over the head drives many small operators. If that means having the kids in a confined shopfront then that is what will happen.

If someone is sending a 20kg lump of cast iron in the mail, it is up to him/her to make sure material handling, packing and labelling, is adequate to prevent injury. It is up to everyone to make sure the risks are assessed, control measures put in place, etc. Should there be some reservations about the receiving procedures, the article should not have been left there until the safety issue was mitigated. If someone does get badly injured it won't just be the Australia Post guy getting investigated.

Common sense suggests in this case that the workplace is fairly benign; no forklifts, no drop saws, no hard hat area, constant supervison in place, etc.

[MO]

Originally Posted by Work Horse

I'm sorry, as entertaining as the views of knee-jerk conservatives with really thick rose coloured glasses are, I have to call "Godwin's Law" on this thread.

Now thats one I'm not familiar with,care to elucidate?

[MO]

Originally Posted by Wally

Whenever someone appoints themself as the social conscience of the population, a fracas is sure to follow.

How many degrees of site safety do we need before all work stops? Well I seem to recall a few members here are in the construction industry and know that answer, in the form of the unions using safety issues to close sites while EBAs and no ticket no start requirements are in negotiation.

A business can wrap itself up in a OH&S/WHS manual, work method statements, MSDS', AS/NZ9000, but at the end of the day, food on the table and a roof over the head drives many small operators. If that means having the kids in a confined shopfront then that is what will happen.

If someone is sending a 20kg lump of cast iron in the mail, it is up to him/her to make sure material handling, packing and labelling, is adequate to prevent injury. It is up to everyone to make sure the risks are assessed, control measures put in place, etc. Should there be some reservations about the receiving procedures, the article should not have been left there until the safety issue was mitigated. If someone does get badly injured it won't just be the Australia Post guy getting investigated.

Common sense suggests in this case that the workplace is fairly benign; no forklifts, no drop saws, no hard hat area, constant supervison in place, etc.

Well said Wally.

[Work Horse]

Originally Posted by MO

Now thats one I'm not familiar with,care to elucidate?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law

Godwin's Law (also known as Godwin's Rule of Nazi Analogies)[1] is a humorous observation coined by Mike Godwin in 1990, and which has become an Internet adage. It states: "As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1."[2][3]

Godwin's Law is often cited in online discussions as a deterrent against the use of arguments in the widespread reductio ad Hitlerum form. The rule does not make any statement about whether any particular reference or comparison to Adolf Hitler or the Nazis might be appropriate, but only asserts that the likelihood of such a reference or comparison arising increases as the discussion progresses. It is precisely because such a comparison or reference may sometimes be appropriate, Godwin has argued,[4] that overuse of Nazi and Hitler comparisons should be avoided, because it robs the valid comparisons of their impact.

Although in one of its early forms Godwin's Law referred specifically to Usenet newsgroup discussions,[5] the law is now applied to any threaded online discussion: electronic mailing lists, message boards, chat rooms, and more recently blog comment threads and wiki talk pages.

[flappist]

Originally Posted by MO

Now thats one I'm not familiar with,care to elucidate?

"Godwins law" is a comment by a self appointed internet guru in 1990 that is often cited by amateur social engineers when discussions go in the direction with which they do not agree.

It has as much connection with the real world as "Murphys law".....

[MO]

@ Work Horse and Flappist thanks for the info and now that 'Murphy' is also in on this well the mind boggles as to the direction some comments may go.

[b2tf]

If we're up to discussing Nazis we're probably done.