Job strain exposures vs. stress-related workers’ compensation claims in Victoria, Australia: developing a public health response to job stress

We present a comparative analysis of patterns of exposure to job stressors and stress-related workers’ compensation (WC) claims to provide an evaluation of the adequacy of claims-driven policy and practice. We assessed job strain prevalence in a 2003 population-based survey of Victorian [Australia] workers and compared these results with stress-related WC statistics for the same year. Job strain prevalence was higher among females than males, and elevated among lower vs. higher occupational skill levels. In comparison, claims were higher among females than males, but primarily among higher skill-level workers. There was some congruence between exposure and WC claims patterns. Highly exposed groups in lower socio-economic positions were underrepresented in claims statistics, suggesting that the WC insurance perspective substantially underestimates the job stress problems for these groups. Thus to provide a sufficient evidence base for equitable policy and practice responses to this growing public health problem, exposure or health outcome data are needed as an essential complement to claims statistics.

Workers’ compensation and mental health : examining the mental health impacts of involvement in the Victorian Work Cover system from the perspective of long-­term injured workers

The project aimed to explore long--term injured workers’ experiences and perceptions of their mental health as they progressed through the Victorian WorkCover process. The purpose of the project was to assist in understanding these factors in order to identify how workers might be better supported, and to identify changes that compensation authorities, employers and unions can make to reduce mental distress amongst injured workers. As a project based on workers’ accounts of their experiences, it aimed to provide a narrative basis for the development of supportive policy and practice to reduce mental distress amongst people who are clients of the WorkCover system. The project was a qualitative study based on fifteen in--depth interviews with people who had been injured at work and who had been off work for at least six months. The workers who took part in the study were recruited with the assistance of their trade unions, using an advertisement that was distributed via the unions’ regular communication channels. Workers were asked to tell their story of injury and recovery with a particular focus on how they felt and the factors that affected them, both positively and negatively. They were also asked what could or should be changed to support workers’ recovery and improve their experience of the WorkCover system. The workers who took part in the study came from a variety of industry sectors (education, textile and clothing manufacturing and meat industries) and different occupational categories (professional, trade/technical and manual). They included people whose primary injury was physical and those whose primary injury was psychosocial.

The association between attributions of responsibility for motor vehicle accidents and patient satisfaction: a study within a no-fault injury compensation system

This study set out to test the relationship between attributions of responsibility for motor vehicle accidents and satisfaction with personal injury compensation systems.

A first step towards a simple in-line shape compensation routine for the roll forming of high strength steel

The roll forming process is increasingly used in the automotive industry for the manufacture of structural and crash components from Ultra High Strength Steel (UHSS). Due to the high strength of UHSS (<1GPa) even small and commonly observed material property variations from coil to coil can result in significant changes in material yield and through that affect the final shape of the roll formed component. This requires the re-adjustment of tooling to compensate for shape defects and maintain part geometry resulting in costly downtimes of equipment. This paper presents a first step towards an in-line shape compensation method that based on the monitoring of roll load and torque allows for the estimation of shape defects and the subsequent re-adjustment of tooling for compensation. For this the effect of material property variation on common shape defects observed in the roll forming process as well as measurable process parameters such as roll load and torque needs to be understood. The effect of yield strength and material hardening on roll load and torque as well as longitudinal bow is investigated via experimental trials and numerical analysis. A regression analysis combined with Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) techniques is employed to establish the relationships between the process and material parameters and to determine their percentage influence on longitudinal bow, roll load and torque. The study will show that the level of longitudinal bow, one of the major shape defects observed in roll forming, can be estimated by variations in roll load and torque.

In-line shape compensation for roll forming through process parameter monitoring

Buddhika’s Phd topic is In-line shape compensation for roll forming through process parameter monitoring. It mainly discussed about defects monitoring and compensation in high strength steel roll forming for automotive applications.

A way through the dark and thorny thickets? The adjudication of ‘serious injury’ under the narrative tests in the Transport Accident Act 1986 (Vic) and the Workplace Injury Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2013 (Vic)

The so-called narrative test provides the means by which injured persons who satisfy the statutory and common law definition of serious injury may bring proceedings for common law damages under s 93 of the Transport Accident Act 1986 (Vic) and s 134AB of the Accident Compensation Act 1985 (Vic) (or, for injuries after 1 July 2014, under ss 324-347 of the Workplace Injury Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2013 (Vic)). These are among the most litigated provisions in Australia. This article outlines the legislative and political background to these provisions, the provisions themselves, and an account of the statutory and common law requirements needed to satisfy the provisions.