HASANZ DIRECTORS UPDATE

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S UPDATE TO MEMBERS

April 2019

Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

The year is flying by and HASANZ is pumping, as they say.

Getting out and about

It was great to get out and about as part of the Business Central health and safety roadshow in March. We visited seven North Island centres and there are two more to go. There was a good turnout everywhere. Most of the attendees were business people with health and safety responsibilities. They were interested in the HASANZ Register as a tool to help them find advisers on the issues they have to manage, like fatigue and workplace stress. It was great to share the demonstrations with my colleague Lisa Bridge and HFESNZ Chairperson and Governance Group rep. Marion Edwin. It was good to hear first hand what businesses need to make workplaces healthier and safer.

On March 15 I co-hosted a webinar for members of the Human Resources Institute of New Zealand (HRINZ) with Sarah Bond who is both an experienced HR consultant and health and safety professional. We demonstrated how the HASANZ Register can be used to identify verified health and safety professionals for internal and consultant roles. Sarah highlighted how the HASANZ Register gives clarity on the skills and competencies you are recruiting for.

HASANZ is looking for other opportunities to get the message out about the value of the HASANZ Register, working with other organisations wherever possible to reach new audiences.

Strategic Partnership with Duncan Cotterill



HASANZ is entering a strategic partnership with law firm Duncan Cotterill. It will extend our reach into the legal and insurance sectors and provide opportunities to undertake joint activities and thought leadership in health and safety. This has already started. In the latest (April) issue of Safeguard magazine you will see that Duncan Cotterill partner Olivia Lund contributed an excellent thought piece for our HASANZ column. It gives a very useful update on enforcement under the HSWA.
On 9 and 10 April HASANZ Chair Mike O’Brien and I are giving a presentation on the HASANZ Register at workplace health and safety workshops being held for Duncan Cotterill clients in Auckland and Wellington respectively. We’re proud to be working with a leading law firm that shares our values and has extensive expertise in health and safety.

HASANZ Register promotion

Our digital marketing campaign to drive businesses to the HASANZ Register is going great guns. By the end of March our ads had appeared on screen to potential users more than a million times and 7,105 of them clicked through to the Register.

Registration renewals

The time for renewing registration on the HASANZ Register is quickly rolling around. If you were on the Register when it opened for business your current registration will expire on 27 July. HASANZ will be in touch to provide more information on the renewal process and what you need to do but you can get a head-start by updating your competencies now.

And remember, it’s never too late to list. As you gain qualifications and meet the required competency standards for your HASANZ member association, it’s important that you apply through them to be on the HASANZ Register to stand among you peers as a verified professional.

Musculoskeletal Disorders Survey

In March HASANZ commissioned market research for ACC on how businesses manage musculoskeletal disorders (MSD). This research will improve understanding business awareness of MSD and how they are currently dealing with injuries and health problems associated with repetitive and strenuous work, like strains and sprains, muscular and soft tissue injuries and occupational overuse syndrome. It will be interesting to learn how much of a priority area it is for them and if they take any preventive measures to protect workers. The findings will feed into the government’s Harm Reduction Action Plan and ensure that resources are well targeted.

PERFORM webinar

There was an excellent response to the PERFORM webinar hosted by HASANZ on 18 March. PERFORM is a new framework to reduce musculo-skeletal injuries in the workplace and HASANZ is assisting ACC with piloting it among New Zealand businesses. More than 70 of our members took part in the webinar to learn more about it and how they might support the pilot – not bad for a Monday night!

Next HASANZ Conference dates

Planning is well underway for HASANZ CONFERENCE 2020 which will be held from September 9 to 11 in Wellington at Te Papa. Save the dates in your calendar now! Again, you can expect an excellent programme featuring outstanding speakers with broad appeal. If you are interested in being a sponsor or exhibitor at the conference, please contact our conference organiser Amy Abel, email amy@confer.co.nz Get in early as places are limited.

HASANZ AGM

Another date to keep on your radar is the HASANZ AGM which will be held on Friday 26 July. We’re using the occasion to launch the initial findings of our stocktake of New Zealand’s health and safety professions.

Stocktake survey

Look out for an online survey from HASANZ arriving in your in-box anytime soon. We’re reaching out to all of our members to take part in the HASANZ stocktake of workplace health and safety professions. This is a New Zealand first and it’s important that you are included. The survey canvasses everything from demographics to qualifications and pay.
The resulting data will enable us to compare professions and identify gaps in supply and demand. This valuable information will guide the development of relevant health and safety initiatives. Please complete the survey by 26 April. Your individual responses will be confidential and you will not be personally identified in the report.

HASANZ Scholarship Programme expanded

Applications for 2019 HASANZ Scholarships open on 3 July and close on 2 September.

We have added two new categories to the HASANZ Scholarship Programme. This year, scholarships will be available for people undertaking Applied Research projects in workplace health and safety. We have also created Poutama Scholarships for Māori applicants to support diversity in New Zealand’s health and safety workforce. We will also be offering General, Postgraduate and Occupational Hygienist Scholarships again.

We are also looking to expand our scholarship fund. If you know an organisation that would like to be a sponsor, please email info@hasanz.org.nz requesting a HASANZ Scholarship Sponsorship prospectus.

Meanwhile, our current HASANZ Scholarship recipients are booked for a field day in Wellington in June, including afternoon tea with the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, the Hon Iain Lees-Galloway.

Nga mihi nui

Philip Aldridge