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Over the course of the past six years, data from WorkSafe NZ shows there has been a gradual increase in notifiable incidents being reported (see graph below). This blog explores the best methods to prevent notifiable incidents at work, as well as a range of possible reasons behind this increase in New Zealand. Reported Notifiable Incident Yearly Totals What are the Best Methods to Prevent Notifiable Incidents at Work? There are a range of ways to combat notifiable incidents occurring within your workplace, and SME business owners would all benefit from incorporating these into their business management strategy. Cultivating a Strong Safety Culture in Your Workplace Having a robust safety culture within your organisation will help to reduce the likelihood of notifiable incidents occurring, as your team will have confidence knowing they can communicate whether a situation or process doesn't seem safe. A safety culture starts with management , as they need to lead by example and prioritise safety as a core value within the organisation . When you lead by example, it helps ensure that your team will feel more comfortable reporting issues without fear of repercussions. Identify and Manage Hazards Proactively When you have a robust health and safety management system, you'll have clear policies and procedures for managing your organisation's health and safety . Ensure you are systemically identifying and managing the risks and hazards within your workplace to best prevent notifiable incidents from happening. Involve your team when assessing potential hazards and the associated risks, as they'll often have first-hand knowledge of potential problems area. Provide Thorough Health & Safety Training Ensure your team have all been properly inducted and trained for their role. Make sure your team know how to perform their jobs safely and understand how to use necessary equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE) correctly . If you don't have a health and safety officer within your workplace, you can employ the services of a health and safety consultant to orchestrate and run a training session for your team as necessary. We offer a range of training services for our management and one-off clients and personalise the training specifically for your team's needs. Clearly Communicate Health & Safety Information It goes without saying that a safe workplace is one with clear signage of hazards and PPE requirements, but it's also important to communicate safety information with your team regularly . Whether it's a full-blown safety meeting or touched on in a toolbox meeting, make safety a routine part of workplace discussions . Utilising clear health and safety communication, such as clear signage and markings, as well as encouraging safety to be an everyday awareness, you can greatly reduce the risk of a serious incident occurring. By implementing some or all of these health and safety management strategies, your organisation can significantly reduce the chances of a notifiable incident occurring, making your workplace a safer environment for everyone. Why Has There Been a Rise in Notifiable Incidents Occurring in New Zealand? There are a few potential reasons behind why notifiable incidents have seen an increase in the last few years. Namely, COVID-19's impact on New Zealand's workforce and the economic hardship experienced by many in 2024 and 2025. How Did COVID-19 Impact Workplace Notifiable Incidents? With the whole of New Zealand going into lockdown back in March of 2020, and parts of New Zealand going into lockdown again in 2021 ( Beehive, 2025 ), many people weren't going into their workplace as usual. When looking at the graph above, we see a drop coming into 2020 of notifiable incidents occurring ( 1485 reported ). Considering that 2018 had 1700 notifiable incidents and 2019 had 1800 notifiable incidents , it's safe to say 2020 saw a drastic decrease in reporting. During lockdown level 4 in New Zealand, only essential services remained open ( RNZ, n.d. ), while we did see a bit more freedom in lockdown level 3, many people still weren't having to go into work like normal. However, it would take years for remote work to decrease. The ability to work from home (WFH) became a common component of many jobs, with hybrid roles being a happy compromise for some. Data shows that from 2020 to 2023, WFH continued to climb and only started to fall at the end of 2023 in December ( Seek, n.d. ). This reduction in notifiable incidents reported in 2020, 2021, 2022, and even 2023 can be explained by the increase in WFH roles for many people, which significantly lowered the likelihood of notifiable incidents occurring. How Does the Economy Affect Workplace Notifiable Incidents? It's no secret that the last couple of years have been financially challenging; economic hardship can impact the number of notifiable events, as business owners may try to cut corners and workers face concerns of job security. The mantra of 2024 was to "survive to 2025", and then the economy would be better, but this unfortunately wasn't the case, with the economy in 2025 remaining poor ( Newsroom, 2025 ; RNZ, 2025 ) Businesses may be tempted to try to cut corners when faced with financial hardship, and not seek expert advice when they should; studies show that throughout different economic cycles, workplace incidents themselves do rise and fall too, but it's more likely that this is a result of how companies engage health and safety systems within their organisation, rather than an unavoidable truth of specific economic cycles ( The Business Leaders Health and Safety Forum, 2023 ). It's important for leadership to be understanding of the pressures that many of their workers will be experiencing due to financial hardship; be mindful of the impact this can have on their mental and physical health, too. Workplace Wellbeing (2024) conducted a survey, which found that two in every five employees' wellbeing was affected due to concerns of cost-cutting and restructuring, as well as job security in general. Make wellbeing a routine part of your conversations with your team, allow them to express if they're struggling, and then you can better understand what you can do to support them. Maintaining a thorough and consistent health and safety management system throughout all cycles of the economy will help SMEs prevent notifiable incidents from occurring. Make health and safety a routine part of daily discussions or meetings, have management lead by example and encourage the cultivation of a health and safety culture at work, proactively identify and manage hazards and risks before they can become a serious problem, and ensure your team is trained properly and feels capable of performing their roles, utilise the support of outside experts if you need help with your health and safety systems, and last but not least, ensure health and safety information is clearly and consistently communicated through signs and markings. All of these work together to cultivate a strong health and safety environment at work.

The days are finally getting longer again, and we're out and about socialising more too. It's important to have fun in life but remember to consider whether you have to go to work soon after socialising or not. Make sure you have plenty of time to rest after partying before you have to head to work. What are the alcohol limits for drivers? For drivers under 20 years, the limit is zero For drivers 20 years and up, the limit is 250mg The blood alcohol is 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood (0.05) What happens if you fail an evidential breath test? If you fail an evidential breath test between 251 and 400 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath, you'll receive an infringement notice with a $200 infringement fee and 50 demerit points. It's also important to note, you can still be over the limit the following day depending on how much you had to drink. Tips for staying safe at work this festive period Don't drink or use drugs before work Get enough sleep so that you can work safely and effectively Contact your manager if you aren't able to work safely

The NZ Herald recently had a couple of articles about a car versus a bus accident in Te Anau. The first photo I saw was the burnt wreck of both vehicles. However, the second article I saw showed the vehicles fully alight, flames leaping high, and black smoke filling the sky. The article read that the man inside the car was screaming for help. Around the same time, there was a fatal car versus train incident near Matamata. The photos, and story, about the Te Anau accident appalled me. There will be many people who see, and read, that article who are connected with the victims. These may be family, friends and work mates. The trauma of knowing a person has been burnt alive is huge, but becomes insignificant when the imagined becomes the reality, thanks to the photos. I know a person who was one of the first on the scene at the train incident. These are two examples of trauma which may not be work related. Regardless of this, as responsible employers or managers, we need to manage these situations. A worker who is traumatised is not going to be a safe, or productive, worker. One of the first things we can do is have an organisational culture which encourages workers to tell us when things are affecting them. Let them know that it’s okay to speak up, and they won’t be judged or ridiculed for “being soft”. Be clear about who workers can talk to. This may be their direct supervisor, or the health and safety, or HR manager, depending on the organisation. Workers need to be told that it is their responsibility to speak up, if they are suffering from trauma. They need to understand that their managers are not mind-readers and will not automatically know that the worker is having a problem. In the event of a workplace trauma, particularly a significant trauma, there will be a lot of options for worker support. Similar steps can be put in place for non-work related trauma. These can include giving them a person to talk to, assisting with finding counselling, giving them some time off. Possibly, a driver who has witnessed an horrific crash may benefit from having another driver with them for a period of time. As employers and managers, we can offer support, but it is up to the worker to accept it. Some workers will respond better to different types of support than others. It is in everyone’s best interests to listen to, and support, workers.

A woman wearing a lot of PPE gear. What Is Workplace Health & Safety? For many years, workplace health and safety have only really focused on the safety aspect. The health bit was just lip service. Although we know more people die from work-related health harm (750 – 900 per annum, WorkSafe NZ ) than work-related injuries (70 in 2024, WorkSafe NZ ), it seemed that providing PPE and hoping people wear it was the way to go. Over the past few years, the focus on safety has expanded to encompass both health and safety. One aspect of health that has gained significant attention within the workplace is mental well-being. As such, organisations should have wellbeing strategies in place to support their staff. These will differ between organisations, depending on their culture, the type of work, their staff, and their ability to resource the strategy. What are some simple strategies for well-being support in the workplace? Allowing people time off when they are under extreme pressure Reassessing their workload to allow them time to recover their equilibrium Providing external support agencies Many of our clients love their annual fishing trip, and others reward drivers who receive compliments. At Safewise, we do an annual yoga retreat. It’s just a day, but it allows us to relax, be open with each other, move our bodies and learn a little b it more about ourselves. Generally, it’s a good idea to ask the staff what they value. Think about what you can do to support your staff’s wellbeing. You will be well rewarded for it. Estimates for the return on investment start at 2:1 , but many organisations report a much higher return. How can Safewise help? We work with organisations that need more health and safety knowledge, or more time than they have in-house to manage it. For more information, check out our services here .

Have you ever come across roadworks and been confused by the traffic management? Maybe the gaps between the cones are large enough for a vehicle to move between, maybe there are conflicting arrows, maybe there doesn’t appear to be any reason for them. The risk of a vehicle incident is much higher when the traffic management plan appears confusing, both for the road users and for the road workers. Your workplace can be just as confusing and high-risk, particularly if people are new to the site. There are three aspects to traffic management in a workplace: the site, the vehicles or machines, and the people. Improving safety at the site means looking at the layout of the site, its purpose, and the way it is used. Some issues to consider include: is the site methodically laid out? Is the speed limit clearly displayed? You may need to consider speed bumps or other means to slow traffic. Are traffic areas separate so that machinery such as forklifts is separate from the trucks? Is the staff car parking clear of the operating area? Can visitors easily identify parking, and is it away from the operating area? A one-way system of traffic flow is always best as the traffic flow is predictable and requires no, or less, reversing. Are walkways clearly marked? Line marking them works well, so does using other objects, such as cones, barriers, even planter boxes. Consider the vehicles or machines. Are they fit for purpose? Think about the visibility of the machines – lights, beepers, colour, etc. Can the workflow be set up to reduce the number of interactions between vehicles, machines and people? People need to be aware of what the traffic movements are like in the workplace; for example, are they likely to be crossing paths with trucks or forklifts? They need to understand the safe locations to stand when loading and unloading is taking place. Induction of staff, contractors and relevant visitors is important. Staff need to be aware of their surroundings and what is expected of them. Creating and documenting a traffic management plan is a wise option. Involve management and workers. This will allow the traffic management plan to be considered from all aspects and will result in a better plan and increased compliance. Review it at regular intervals to ensure it still fits the workplace. Any change in the work may require a change in the traffic management plan. Planning traffic movements is an easy step towards keeping people safe.

New Zealand, along with the rest of the world, has been through a unique experience, one we hope never to repeat. The craziness of panic buying hand sanitiser, toilet paper and PPE looms large in our memories. COVID-19 highlighted many positive aspects of humanity and identified other areas where we did not stand for the greater good. Like many others, I tried to buy, with limited success, hand sanitiser for my on-the-road workers to keep in their vehicles. If I were honest, I would say that this was not something I had previously thought of. My workers are always based in our office with regular visits to our clients. The visits usually occur in an office-type environment. My workers have easy access to clean and well-maintained facilities. However, many workers have different experiences when working away from the administrative base. They may not have easy or regular access to clean toilets, they may be required to sleep in their trucks (often in very good conditions) and use shared facilities, or they may stay in budget motels. Meals may be irregular and limited in range. Part of the health and safety responsibility of the organisation is to manage the health and safety of its workers wherever and whenever they are at work. The definition of a workplace includes a vehicle, vessel, aircraft, ship or other mobile structure. Therefore, the organisation must ensure that workers have easy access to appropriate facilities to manage their health and safety. One of my clients was confident that they were providing appropriate accommodation for their drivers when they stayed away. They paid for accommodation and a meal allowance. The accommodation offered the kind of facilities that would be expected. However, in conversation with a driver, they identified that the place was not cleaned to an acceptable standard and that drivers were uncomfortable staying there. We also launched a discussion about the type and quantity of food that should be consumed. These conversations enabled my client to improve the quality of the accommodation and provide a better system of transporting food so that drivers didn’t have to rely on takeaways or steak, egg and chips from the local pub. Talk to your off-site staff to understand what they experience and what they need. It’s an opportunity to give them some guidance about healthy habits and to ensure that they are experiencing the standard of care you believe you are providing.

That appears to be the question of the day. We are getting asked this often. The question is always accompanied by – my client won’t let us on site unless we are vaccinated, my customers are saying they won’t use us unless we are fully vaccinated, the newspaper reports that The Warehouse is proposing compulsory vaccination. The answer is very complicated. COVID-19 is challenging enough from a health and safety perspective, but many of the issues need to be managed under HR. The health and safety decisions employers make now may have massive repercussions under HR legislation. WorkSafe New Zealand have released advice on “ How to decide what work requires a vaccinated employee ” . This is for work that is not covered under the COVID-19 Public Health Response Orders. The main points from this guidance are: Undertake a risk assessment to identify if an employee should be vaccinated for work health and safety purposes, where the nature of the work itself raises the risk of Covid-19 infection and transmission above the risk faced outside work Follow Employment New Zealand guidance Focus on the role, not the individual Complete the risk assessment with employees and their representatives WorkSafe NZ have developed the following to assist with the assessment: Risk factors to consider Consider other controls Identify any further infectious disease controls you and your employees could implement. The Ministry of Health has provided detailed information . Examples of other controls include: - Limiting access to the site – restricting numbers, staggering shifts, visits, etc. - Contactless service - Use of the Covid-19 QR scanning or other registration of people’s presence - Wearing face coverings - Using gloves - Sanitiser or hand washing - Regular cleaning of the environment, especially the common touch points Assess the results Assess the results of your risk factor discussion and the impact of any extra controls you will implement. If your risk ratings tend towards higher risk and you are not able to reduce that risk by implementing more controls, you and your employees should consider whether the work should be performed by a vaccinated employee. If the risk is low and shows that transmission is not higher than the risk from outside work, you may decide not to require the role to be undertaken by a vaccinated employee. You should still encourage your employees to get vaccinated. You can do this by encouraging discussion, providing access to legitimate information, allowing employees time off to be vaccinated and recognising that some people may have reactions and need time off, etc.