We are committed to communicating and engaging effectively and appropriately with our culturally diverse stakeholders. Examples of ways we have done this include:
• a language pagea on our website that allows visitors to translate content on the site into more than 30 languages;
• multilingual community events, run by our educational officers, to promote recreational fishing rules among people whose first language is not English – a recent example was a multilingual fishing information event we held in Albany for migrants new to the region;
• legislative recognition of the customary fishing rights of Indigenous fishers exempting them from having to hold recreational fishing licences;
• production of a number of multilingual publications including our crab fishing brochure for the west coast region in Vietnamese, Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, Malay (Bahasa) and Bahasa Melayu;
• contribution to a monthly recreational fishing column in The Life, a Chinese community newspaper;
• a concerted campaign to engage with recreational crab fishers in the Peel- Harvey Estuary whose first language is not English, including through multilingual publicity materials, community newspaper advertising and advertising on a Chinese community website. For more details on this campaign, go to our fish for the future case study on page 50;
• Indigenous ranger workshops regarding biosecurity to assist with identification of harmful aquatic organisms;
• support for Fishers with Disabilities, a not-for-profit organisation which seeks to provide fishing opportunities for people with disabilities in WA. For more details on Fishers with Disabilities, go to our stakeholder focus section on page 9.
a
Department of Fisheries Annual Report 2014/15 | How we performed | Page 155
Occupational health, safety and injury management
We have an occupational safety and health (OSH) policy that outlines our commitment to health and safety. This policy includes an OSH commitment
statement, which is reviewed annually, endorsed by the Director General and reflects the Corporate Executive’s commitment to health and safety.
We have an OSH committee made up of OSH representatives and corporate management members. There are two OSH sub-committees – the Dive Control Group and the Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Awareness Group.
Our wellness program promotes health awareness among employees through various activities throughout the year. Future efforts of the wellness program will be aligned to resilience and integrating mental health best practices into all aspects of wellness activities, policies and programs.
In 2014, our injury management procedure was updated to incorporate provisions for mental illness and for the management of injuries sustained outside of work. As a result, the Department initiates face-to-face meetings with an injured employee, their supervisor and the return to work coordinator, to better assist an employee who has recovered or is recovering from injury to return to work.
As a result of a desktop audit in 2012, improvements to our occupational safety and health management system were identified. As a result, 22 procedures have been reviewed and updated in the past two years.
Department of Fisheries Annual Report 2014/15 | How we performed | Page 156
Table 11: The Department’s OSH Improvement Plan 2015-2018 aims to achieve the
following five safety key performance indicators:
Key Performance Indicator Purpose Actual 2013/14 Goal 2014/15 Result June 2015 1. OSH online supervisor training
All managers and supervisors within the Department have completed this training.
78% 90% 96%
2. Safety agenda item
All Department team/area meetings include safety as an agenda item to be discussed and documented in the minutes. 44% 90% 61% 3. Hazard, Accident and Incident Report (HAIR) forms
All HAIR forms are completed
accurately and a copy arrives with the OSH team in People Services Branch within 10 working days of initiation.
53% 75% 60%
4. Workers’ compensation return to work plans
Ensure that all workers’ compensation claims that need a return to work plan are completed, followed and signed off when the employee returns if on restricted duties.
42% 75% 89%
5. Return of employee to work within three months of injury/ illness
When an employee suffers an injury/ illness and it is classed as a ‘Lost Time Injury’, ensure that the
rehabilitation team (e.g. supervisors, practitioners, rehabilitation consultants and the OSH team) work together to prioritise getting the employee back to full-time duties within three months after their injury/illness.
Department of Fisheries Annual Report 2014/15 | How we performed | Page 157
Table 12: Occupational safety and health injury management performance against
key indicators
Measure Actual results Results against target
2012/13 2014/15 Target Comment on
Results
Number of Fatalities 0% 0% 0% Target achieved Lost time injury
incidence rate
0.67% 0.82% < 10% Target achieved
Lost time injury severity rate 33% 0% < 10% Target achieved Percentage of injured workers returned to work: within 13 weeks within 26 weeks 67% 33% 100% NA > 80% Target achieved Percentage of managers trained in occupational safety, health and injury management
responsibilities
60% 96% > 80% Target achieved
Note: Calculations in the above table are consistent with the requirements of the
Public Sector Commission (PSC) Circular 2012-05 and the Code of Practice:
Department of Fisheries Annual Report 2014/15 | Appendices | Page 158