Each edition, we feature someone who knows their field inside and out, sharing practical lessons you won’t find in a manual. This month we hear from Joel Warren, Industry Safety and Health Representative, on speaking up on site.
Speaking up on site sounds simple. See something unsafe, say something. But anyone who has worked in mining knows it is not always that easy.
It can be hard to be the person who stops the job, questions a supervisor, pulls up a workmate or says something does not feel right. It comes down to personalities, confidence, crew culture and whether people feel they have support around them.
That is why speaking up is not just about courage. It is about knowing what to do, who to go to, and understanding that you are not on your own.
The first step is usually within the crew or immediate work area. If you see something that could become a risk, if conditions are changing or something does not fit the normal plan, raise it with your deputy, supervisor or leading hand.
But reporting something does not mean you can wash your hands of it and walk away. Everyone has a duty of care to themselves and the people around them. If you identify a hazard, you still have a responsibility to make sure people are aware of it and that the risk is being managed.
If there is an immediate danger, stop. Do not keep going just because the job is under pressure. Production matters, but it does not matter more than someone going home.
The hard part is that safety is often measured by failures. You do not always know what worked because nothing happened. You usually only know what failed after someone is hurt. That is why the small things matter. The rough road, the unsafe shortcut, the bit of gear being used the wrong way, changing conditions underground, a procedure not being followed properly or something that simply does not look right. One small thing on its own might not seem like much, but if the same things keep getting ignored, sooner or later they can line up badly.
There are proper pathways for workers to raise concerns and understanding those roles is important.
At crew level, workers will usually raise concerns with deputies, supervisors or managers first. Sites also have Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs), who are elected worker representatives trained to help represent workers on safety matters within designated work groups.
Coal mines also have Site Safety and Health Representatives (SSHRs), commonly known throughout the industry as “checkies” or “check inspectors”. The term dates back decades and originally referred to workers “checking” mine workings, equipment and conditions for hazards.
Checkies are elected positions affiliated with the union and focused specifically on mine safety at site level. Their role is to give workers an independent voice on safety issues and help make sure concerns are properly raised, documented and followed through.
Checkies have legislated powers and responsibilities to inspect areas, investigate complaints, review incidents and help escalate unresolved concerns. Importantly, they are there for everyone on site, not just union members. A contractor, truck driver, operator, tradesperson or labour hire worker can all approach a checkie if they have concerns.
If issues still aren’t being properly addressed, they can then be escalated further to Industry Safety and Health Representatives (ISHRs). ISHRs work across multiple mine sites and bring broader industry experience, training and regulatory knowledge. They work closely with site representatives, workers, and companies when significant issues arise.
| IN THE KNOW: QUICK TIPS Ask questions early. You do not need to have all the answers to raise a concern. If something looks wrong, stop and check. Do not keep going just because “that’s how we’ve always done it”. Talk to your crew. If you are not confident raising something alone, take a workmate with you. Use the safety structure. Deputies, supervisors, HSRs, SSHRs, ISHRs and regulators all form part of the process. Remember checkies are there for everyone on site, not just union members. Focus on the risk, not the person. Help people understand what could go wrong. Do not ignore small hazards. Small things can become big things when they are repeated or normalised. Psychosocial hazards count too. Bullying, harassment, pressure and stress are safety issues. Speaking up might feel hard in the moment. Staying quiet after seeing a risk can be harder later. |
ISHRs also work closely with regulators. In NSW, that includes the NSW Resources Regulator, while in Queensland it includes Resources Safety and Health Queensland and the Coal Mining Safety and Health Inspectorate. While regulators remain independent and responsible for enforcement, investigations and compliance, safety representatives and regulators regularly communicate around serious incidents, emerging risks and unresolved site concerns.
Having experienced safety representatives involved can make it much easier for workers to raise concerns, particularly when they are unsure how to escalate an issue or do not feel confident doing it alone.
That support structure has become increasingly important as the industry’s understanding of safety has evolved. Physical hazards remain a major focus across both underground and open cut coal mining, although the risks and operating environments can look very different from site to site.
Underground crews may be managing changing strata conditions, ventilation and confined work areas, while open cut operations deal with heavy vehicle interactions, fatigue, road conditions and large mobile equipment movements. Different environments create different risks, but the need for workers to speak up remains the same.
Years ago, if someone was struggling, the answer was often “toughen up”. That is not good enough anymore. Physical safety is still critical, but psychosocial hazards matter too. Bullying, harassment, pressure, stress and the way people are treated can all affect safety.
Everyone reacts differently. Something one person laughs off might seriously affect someone else. That is why culture matters. A crew that shuts people down will miss things. A crew that listens has a better chance of fixing problems early.
Speaking up does not always mean making a formal complaint. Sometimes it starts with a simple question: why are we doing it this way? Is this safe? Has this changed? Do we need to stop and have another look?
If you are not confident raising something alone, talk to someone in your crew. There is strength in having another person with you. You might not explain it perfectly, but your workmate might add something that helps get the point across. If more than one person has noticed the same issue, it is harder to dismiss.
It also matters how you speak to people. If someone is doing something unsafe, the first job is to stop them before they get hurt. But after that, the aim should be to help them understand the risk, not just bark orders. Sometimes people have done something the same way for ten or twenty years and that does not make it right. You may need to say, hang on, think about what could happen here.
Being a safety representative can be a hard and thankless job. Site checkies can cop pressure from both sides. Management might see them as difficult, while workers can get frustrated if things are not fixed quickly enough. But the whole purpose of the role is to keep checking, keep raising issues and keep pressure on problems before someone gets hurt.
At the end of the day, speaking up can be hard. But not speaking up can be much harder to live with. You do not want to look back after an incident and think, I saw that yesterday and said nothing.
