Building a Safe and Healthy Community Sector into the Future

ASU members working in the community sector work with some of the most vulnerable and disadvanted members of our community at all stages of the life cycle. They work at the coal face of need undertaking a range of roles in disability support organisations, neighbourhood houses, large church based organisations, environment centres, peak bodies, emergency accommodation, Aboriginal organisations, community legal centres to name a few.

In SA and around the nation the community sector faces increased responsibilities and regulation with less funding and competition for scarce resources.

ASU members working in the community sector work with some of the most vulnerable and disadvanted members of our community at all stages of the life cycle. They work at the coal face of need undertaking a range of roles in disability support organisations, neighbourhood houses, large church based organisations, environment centres, peak bodies, emergency accommodation, Aboriginal organisations, community legal centres to name a few.

Given the importance of the work that community sector workers undertake often with vulnerable, adults, families and children at risk, it is imperative that community service agencies have skilled staff, effectively trained and engaged in good health and safety practices underpinned by adequate structures. These structures and practices must focus on the occupational health, safety and welfare (OHSW) issues specific to the sector. OHSW must be seen as a key issue for workers and organisations, despite the many competing demands the sector faces.

Through the ASU's Safe Workplaces, Healthy Community - Building Community Sector Health and Safety Project (funded through the South Australian Government's Health and Safety Workplace Partnership Programme) we have developed recommendations for building community sector health and safety.

We were proud to launch these recommendations on 20 March 2009 at the ASU office.

ASU member and Branch Councillor Peter Hall who spoke at the launch said "It is sometimes easy to feel client's needs as more important than your own. It is imperative that we raise awareness of what health and safety risks look like in the community sector and that we all work together to raise awareness of how we can keep ourselves and each healthy and safe at work and that by doing so, we improve our quality of service to clients."

The recommendations are about working together across the sector and in partnership with Government and all sector stakeholders to achieve the best possible OHSW awareness, structures and practices in the sector which will ensure we build safe workplaces and a healthy community sector equipped to continue to provide high quality services into the future. The recommendations are in five key areas -

• Strengthening the Sector - focused on the review of funding and staffing models
• Training - focused on the development and delivery of community sector specific training and resources
• Workplace/sector culture - focused on prioritizing OHSW and ensuring it is closely linked to high quality service provision
• Communication - focused on the improvement of communication and understanding of OHSW in a community sector context
• Structures - focused on strengthening OHSW structures ASU Organisers are taking these recommendations to workplaces and we will be working with all employers, peak bodies and the state government to ensure they are implemented.

There are many aspects of the recommendations underway - check your ASU website for dates of community sector specific OHSW training and look out for the community sector health and safety representative handbook.

Download File:
Reccomendations for Building a Safe and Healthy Community Sector into the Future [ pdf ]