Health & Safety

Six children’s coloured sand products prompted widespread school closures across Australia and New Zealand in November 2025 after laboratory testing detected traces of tremolite and chrysotile asbestos. By mid‑November, dozens of schools in New Zealand and over 70 in Australia’s ACT had temporarily shut, while hundreds more sought guidance from regulators. The products, rainbow sand from Educational […]

A new agreement between WorkSafe and Forest360 means forestry roads nationwide are set to become safer. In response to a death on one of its sites, Forest360 has agreed to fund a range of actions. 59-year-old Greg Stevens was killed when his logging truck and trailer rolled while negotiating a tight bend on a Coromandel […]

The Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay region had the highest incidence rate of workplace injury claims in 2024, per Stats NZ data. There were 120 claims per 1,000 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). Yet the national incidence rate for work-related injury claims was 80 claims per 1,000 FTEs, the lowest rate since 2002. Trades workers had the […]

Road construction workers face alarming amounts of abuse, threats, and violence, according to a new survey. It doesn’t help that road users refuse to stop more than once a week. 4.3% of respondents reported being struck by a vehicle in the past year. The 2025 Traffic Controller Safety Survey is the first trans-Tasman study exploring […]

Despite a challenging 18 months for the building sector, many tradies are “holding up well,” says programme lead Rafael Caso, a message backed by this year’s Live Well, Build Well survey. 15% reported that inconsistent or insufficient hours were a key challenge in their jobs, up from 8% in 2024. Of the 641 builders and […]

Despite the building industry’s downturn over the last 18 months, builders and tradies are “holding up well”, the 2025 Live Well, Build Well survey found. 15% expressed that inconsistent or insufficient hours were a key challenge in their jobs, compared to 8% in 2024. Of the 641 builders and tradespeople surveyed, 25% still say they […]