Keeping Stock: Rare praise for Bridges

Simon Bridges wins a rare accolade from the Dominion-Post for the changes he announced last week to workplace health and safety law. The Dom-Post editorial this morning opines:

It is a rare feat for a government of any hue to embark on changes to workplace laws that win the approval of employers and unions alike.
Labour Minister Simon Bridges has managed to achieve that with the overhaul of health and safety rules and regulations he revealed last week.
The package activates nearly all the recommendations from the Independent Task Force on Workplace Health and Safety, which was set up following the Pike River Coal mining tragedy.
The fact the measures have been broadly welcomed by the Council of Trade Unions and Business NZ is a good indication the task force struck the right balance between the need to reduce on-the-job accidents ?and strangling businesses with red tape.
The changes include tougher penalties for health and safety breaches, clear guidelines on the roles and responsibilities of everyone from the boardroom to the smoko room and a new agency, WorkSafe, to police the law and target high-risk industries. They are long overdue.?

It would seem indeed that Simon Bridges has managed to bridge the gap between the expectations of unions and the workers they represent, and business owners. That is commendable.

Simon Bridges' ministerial career has been brief so far, but he is certainly on an upward track. Should National secure a third term leading the Government in 2014, he is likely to be further elevated up the pecking order.

Meanwhile the changes that Bridges plans to implement reinforce the message that workplace health and safety is everyone's responsibility; from the business owner, right down to the most lowly worker. The proposals are sensible and pragmatic, but most importantly place a significant emphasis on injury prevention.?

A significant reform of workplace safety laws is overdue, with the present legislation being 20 years old. Well done to Simon Bridges and his officials for the work that they have done in rolling this policy out to widespread acclaim.

Source: http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/2013/08/rare-praise-for-bridges.html

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