Under Section 63 of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998, employers are required to keep a register of injuries that is readily accessible in the workplace. The manager of any mine or quarry or the occupier of any factory, workshop, office or shop is responsible for this register of injuries. What is a Register of Injuries?
- the register is a current record of any injuries suffered by workers, whether they result in claims or not
- workers who enter particulars of any injury into the register, protect their right to make a claim beyond the three year time limit set down in section 65 of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998
- by prior arrangement, employers can use the register of injuries to notify their insurer of any workplace injuries.
Penalties
The penalty for failing to have a register of injuries is a maximum fine of 50 penalty units (currently $5500).
Sample of the Register of Injuries
Employers can draw up their own injury register. However, it must be reproduced in the prescribed form:
WORKERS COMPENSATION ACT 1987
Register of injuries
Particulars:
Name of injured worker:
Address:
Age: Occupation:
Industry in which worker was engaged:
Operation in which worker was engaged at time of injury:
Date of injury: Hour: am pm
Nature of injury:
Cause of injury:
Remarks:
(Signed)
(Address)
(Date)
[Entries in this book should, if practicable, be made in ink]
Note: The employer's full name and address, together with the name of the employer's insurer and the insurer's address, should be written in ink on the inside cover of the book.