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ThinkSafe

Small business assistance program

A confidential occupational safety and health assistance program


Download brochure [207kb PDF]
Download application [34kb PDF]

  1. Introduction
  2. Small business is important
  3. Reasons to be involved
  4. What is involved
  5. How to apply for assistance
  6. Essential reading

1. Introduction

If you are a small business owner (employ less than 20 people) and want to make your workplace safe, the ThinkSafe Small Business Assistance Program (application) can help you.

The good news is that the help you can get:

  • is free;
  • easy to obtain;
  • takes just three hours of your time; and
  • is a simple process with clear and immediate outcomes.

The ThinkSafe Small Business Assistance Program has been developed using the best small business workplace safety programs across the world as a guide.

2. Small business is important

The small business sector in Western Australia makes a vital contribution to our quality of life and the state's economy.

Small businesses employ almost half the state's workforce, and it is an unfortunate fact that many of these businesses operate in industries that have unacceptably high rates of workplace deaths and injuries. This program will directly assist you to improve occupational safety and health for you and your employees.

The ThinkSafe Small Business Assistance Program is targeted at the following high-risk industry sectors that have significant rates of lost time injury and disease:

  • agriculture, forestry and fishing;
  • construction;
  • health and community services;
  • manufacturing;
  • retail and wholesale; and
  • transport and storage.

Should your business fall outside the above industries, please register [application form PDF 34kb] your interest because you may still be able to access the program.

3. Reasons to be involved

  • Good occupational safety and health practices are part of good business management.
  • Doing the right thing reflects well on your company's image and you are recognised as an employer who cares about your staff.
  • You are more likely to win contracts if your business has a good safety and health record.
  • The program will help you to comply with occupational safety and health laws.
  • There are significant penalties for businesses found to be at fault for not ensuring a safe place to work.

There are also economic reasons to take advantage of this simple program.

  • Safer and more efficient working practices can save you money.
  • You will reduce lost time from workers being sick or off injured.
  • And you could also be paying lower workers' compensation premiums.

The National Occupational Health and Safety Commission estimates that the cost of workplace injury and disease across the Australian small business sector, excluding self-employed and voluntary workers, is a massive $8.3 billion annually.

4. What is involved?

We arrange for an independent occupational safety and health consultant to visit on-site at your workplace to conduct a safety assessment and prepare a simple safety action plan.

Our consultants will visit workplaces in metropolitan or rural Western Australia.

The assessment will take about three hours and is a free service provided by government.

If you are not the manager, you will need to ensure that your manager or person responsible for occupational safety and health in your workplace make themselves available for the three hour session with the consultant.

The consultant won't talk a lot of jargon or blind you with science or statistics. Working together you will be able to develop a simple, easy-to-implement plan that is unique to your business and relevant to your industry.

This is a confidential service and the consultant will not report back to WorkSafe on any aspect of your business.

5. How to apply for assistance

Fill in the application form [PDF 34kb] or call the Hazard hot line on 1800 429 273. Once you have completed the form, simply return it to WorkSafe:

fax: (08) 9321 2148
mail: PO Box 294, WEST PERTH WA 6872

PLEASE NOTE:

  • The OSH consultant will provide you with up to three hours of free advice and meet all travel costs. However, any costs for consultation beyond the three-hour limit will need to be met by your business.
  • WorkSafe will ensure that information provided by employers under the ThinkSafe Small Business Assistance Program is not provided to WorkSafe Inspectors. However, WorkSafe does have a legal requirement to respond to complaints and incidents. Employers who are part of the ThinkSafe Small Business Assistance Program will not be exempt from this procedure.
  • A "small" business is any business which is: -independently owned and operated; managed personally by the major investor(s); maintains relatively small share of the market; and does not form part of a larger group.

6. Essential reading

ThinkSafe resources

These guides will help you to get started with identifying hazards in your workplace and use the WorkSafe Plan to assess how effectively you are managing the hazards, assist you in improving your performance and help you to introduce a good system.

This essential information will help you:

  • get started with identifying hazards in your workplace;
  • assess how effectively you are managing the hazards;
  • assist you in improving your performance;
  • introduce a good system which addresses safety and health problems, makes sure the solutions to the problems really do work and that they keep on working.

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