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Parliamentary Questions


Question On Notice No. 44 asked in the Legislative Council on 13 June 2017 by Hon Alison Xamon

Question Directed to the: Minister for Regional Development representing the Minister for Commerce and Industrial Relations
Parliament: 40 Session: 1


Question

I refer to the ongoing staffing and resourcing concerns surrounding WorkSafe across the 2016-17 reporting period, and ask:

(a) how many FTE are currently employed by WorkSafe;
(b) how many FTE are allocated to inspections and investigations of workplaces and/or accidents;
(c) how many of those outlined in (b) are allocated to each industry group;
(d) of the FTE in (c), and inclusive of their industry group allocation, how many were:
(i) ongoing public sector employees; and
(ii) employed under fixed-term contracts;
(e) for each of those employed under (d)(ii), what is the term of their contract;
(f) where were each of the FTE in (a) located;
(g) which, if any, of the positions outlined in (b) became vacant in 2016-17;
(h) how many of these positions outlined in (g) were redundancies;
(i) what are the job titles and classifications for those positions listed in (b);
(j) what are the job titles and classification for those positions listed in (g);
(k) where were the positions outlined in (g) located;
(l) how many of the FTE positions in (a) are specialist positions in which the inspector/investigator is required to have the expertise to investigate specific types of worksites;
(m) for each of the FTE in (k):
(i) what is their specialist area;
(ii) where was the position located; and
(iii) which, if any, were vacant;
(n) what efforts are being made to fill/recruit vacant positions;
(o) what is being done to maintain the Inspectorate at the optimum staffing level;
(p) will ongoing WorkSafe vacancies mean that the directorates will not be able to:
(i) complete their anticipated project work;
(ii) progress identified industry sectors and hazards for attention; and
(iii) conduct proposed intervention programs; and
(q) what impact will the current level of vacancies have on the capacity of WorkSafe directorates to:
(i) carry out proactive projects;
(ii) respond to employee and public notification of workplace occupational health and safety issues; and
(iii) monitor workplace compliance with issued enforcement actions?
Answered on 15 August 2017

The Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety advises:

(a) As at 30 June 2017 WorkSafe employed 132.67 FTE.

(b) 93 FTE are allocated to Operational Directorates.

(c) Rather than “industry group”, WorkSafe allocates inspector FTEs to Operational Directorates using a combination of industry, function and hazard. FTE allocations for the Operational Directorates are Construction, Regional, and Primary Industries – 29 FTE; Health, Hazards and Plant Safety – 24 FTE; Manufacturing, Transport and Service Industries – 37 FTE; and Audit and Special Investigations – 3 FTE.

(d)

(i) 93

(ii) Nil.

(e) Not applicable.

(f) 123.67 FTEs are based at the Cannington office, seven FTEs are based in Bunbury, one FTE is based in Albany and one FTE is based in Geraldton.

(g) Director - Health Hazards and Plant Safety; Manager – Plant and Engineering; Senior Inspector – Construction

(h) Nil.

(i)

PositionLevel
Director9
Team Manager7
Principal Inspector7
Senior Inspector6
Inspector5
Inspector4
Principal EngineerSCL 4
Senior Inspector EngineerSCL 3
Principal Scientific OfficerSCL 4
Senior Inspector Scientific OfficerSCL 3
Inspector Scientific OfficerSCL 2
Inspector EngineerSCL 1
Senior Inspector – Plant6
Inspector – Plant5
Principal Audit and Special Investigations Officer6
Audit and Compliance Investigator5
Occupational Health Nurse5

(j) Director - Health Hazards and Plant Safety (Level 9); Manager – Plant and Engineering (Level 7); Senior Inspector – Construction (Level 6).

(k) Based at the Cannington office.

(l) At 30 June 2017, WorkSafe had 12.2 inspector FTEs engaged under the Specified Calling classification. The Specified Calling positions, which can be equated to the term specialist inspectors, relate to particular qualifications. The attributes and expertise of inspectors engaged under specified callings can be used across different industries and are not limited to specific types of workplaces.

(m)

(i) None of the inspectors were engaged as Specialist Inspectors.

(ii) All three were based at Cannington.

(iii) All three positions became vacant.

(n) It is expected that vacancies will occur throughout the year. To manage its resources with limited funding, in the normal course of events WorkSafe advertises those vacancies one to two times per year.

(o) WorkSafe offers the opportunity to do work that results in positive workplace changes, flexible working arrangements, the option to salary package, competitive superannuation benefits, a work environment that supports equal opportunity and diversity, partial reimbursement of optical expenses, generous leave options, professional development and employee support.

(p)

(i) Unlikely

(ii) Unlikely

(iii) Unlikely

(q)

(i) Minimal

(ii) Minimal

(iii) Minimal