Historically, the mining industry has had a high incidence of work-related injury and disease and of disasters involving multiple fatalities. It also faces OHS challenges far exceeding those confronting most other industry sectors.

Mine safety legislation can play an important role in meeting those challenges. Although regulation is never likely to be the entire answer, good regulation not only brings laggards up to a minimum legal standard, it also encourages, rewards, and facilitates leaders in going beyond them. Bad regulation, in contrast, constrains good enterprises from taking the initiative to improve OHS, while failing to deter bad ones.

This book describes mine safety legislation in the "mining states" and analyses its strengths and weaknesses. It also examines the broader policy questions of how best to design, implement, and enforce mine safety regulation. It argues that, if further OHS improvements are to be achieved, substantial reform will be necessary not only in setting standards, but also in their implementation. This implies substantial changes in the way the mine safety inspectorates go about their tasks, in how they administer and enforce the law, and in the circumstances in which they choose to prosecute. It also requires the nurturing of a degree of trust—between employers and workers (individually and collectively) and between both these parties and the mines inspectorates—that has been substantially lacking in recent years.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION
The OHS challenge
Mine safety and the role of law

PART ONE: THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK
Safety, regulation and the mining industry

PART TWO: TOWARDS REFORM: BEST PRACTICE REGULATION, INSPECTION, ENFORCEMENT AND PROSECUTION
Towards reform
Designing standards: towards best practice
Inspection: underlying issues
Inspection and enforcement strategies
Inspection and enforcement tools
Prosecution for OHS offences: deterrent or disincentive?
Principles for a more rational and effective prosecution policy

PART THREE: REGULATION IN MANY ROOMS
Industry associatons, trade unions and worker participation
Building trust

Bibliography
Index
Cases
Legislation

"This impressive work provides important insights into how law, regulation and policy interact and influence workplace practice. They are relevant beyond the mining industry and will assist national efforts to improve Australia's OHS performance."

-- Robin Stewart-Crompton, CEO, National Occupational Health and Safety Commission, 2001–2006