Safe Work Australia lists Trucking as most dangerous Sector in Oz

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No one has to tell truckies that their job is tough but it is also one of the most dangerous, according to Safe Work Australia.

The road freight industry has been labelled the most dangerous sector in Australia by a new report from Safe Work Australia.

Although there has been an improvement in road safety involving trucks and a decline in fatality rates in recent years, the industry is still one of the most risky.

A report on health and safety in the road freight industry has been released by Safe Work Australia and shows that although there was a 48 per cent decline in the annual number of work related fatalities in the industry between 2006-2007 and 2010-2011, the rate of fatalities is still high as compared to other industries. In fact fatality rates are almost 10 times higher in this industry than they are for all other industries.

Most of the fatalities in the road freight industry come from the demographic- males between 35 and 54 years of age.

This excerpt from a post on Fullyloaded.com.au explains more about the report and it’s findings:

Of the 352 work-related fatalities in the eight years to 2011, 78 percent occurred while the person was driving on a public road. The most common cause was hitting a stationary object, followed by rollovers and being hit by a moving vehicle.

There were 49 fatalities from loading and unloading, which accounted for 64 per cent of fatalities that occurred at a location other than on a public road. Safe Work Australia says the most common fatality was being hit by falling objects (15 fatalities).

“Most of these fatalities involved a truck driver being struck by an object falling from the truck being unloaded or from the forklift being used,” the report says.

There were 13 fatalities in the eight years to 2011 from being trapped between stationary and moving objects.

Safe Work Australia says the incidents were mainly due to the hazards of manoeuvring trucks and trailers, the presence of other vehicles in the vicinity, the use of loading bays and ramps, and vehicle mounted cranes.

Source: https://www.fullyloaded.com.au/industry-news/1310/safe-work-lists-trucking-as-most-dangerous

It is interesting to note that colliding with stationary objects, rollovers and being hit by a moving vehicle were the most common causes of fatalities in this field. These statistics suggest that more needs to be done to address these specific hazards.

Another major concern is the number of fatalities caused by loading and unloading. Everyone involved in the road freight chain has a part to play in ensuring safety, from the moment the truck is being loaded until the load is delivered and offloaded.

These statistics prove that the Chain of Responsibility needs to be taken more seriously among members of this industry and we need to stop placing all of the blame on drivers.

It is vital that anyone involved in the chain, from consignor to despatch manager, undergo Chain of Responsibility training in order to bring down these high fatality statistics and keep truckies safe.

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