Biltongboer Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Once you start “working†in Australia, you notice that OSH is a dangerous swearword that is used all the time. (Occupational Health and Safety). “Osh†sounds a lot like “eish†- need I say more?Safety here, safety there. Rules, rules, - wear your safety goggles, your hard hat, your safety boots and your high visibility vest - even sunscreen, long-sleeved shirts and wide-rimmed hats are prescribed everywhere. (And they don’t consider condoms as part of the standard safety gear, like they do in iAfrika.) We recently got an invitation to our year-end function - they added a friendly reminder that we need to remember our long-sleeved shirts and wide-rimmed hats. Eish. Sounds like fun.And then you go home and what do you see?An electrical wall outlet right next to your washbasin in the bathroom. The light switch is on the inside of the bathroom - not the outside, like we’re used to. Totally unacceptable according to SABS wiring regulations.All this talk about safety, then you see things like this. What will your hardhat and high-visibility vest help you when you plug your hairdryer into the wall socket, and electrocute yourself in the bathroom while your standing there barefoot, holding the dryer in one hand?I recently saw photos of high voltage powerlines going right over a school playground. Eish. Talk about crazy - even in squatter camps in South Africa people toi-toi about the powerlines that apparently cause cancer, diarrhoea, syphilis and AIDS. Here they build them all over the playground. Just imagine all the fun when the guy with the high visibility vest and hardhat chokes himself in front of 200 kids on the playground while doing maintenance on the power line...what a great idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Australia has adopted lots of these dopey ideas from America, where litigation is the name of the game with everyone trying to sue everyone else for silly little things like daring to breathe the same air they are . . . . . all that compensation for "emotional trauma and hardship", to think someone is breathing the same air in the room!!!!! Anyhow now that reality is going to hit the Yanks fair between the eyes for the next decade or two, we'll see a lot of this affluent "excess" a thing of the past, hopefully, as they come back down to planet Earth and get real in terms of being competitive with their production and industry and toss out a lot of this sort of nonsense in their workplaces.An outsider coming to Australia can see how much "over the top" some of it is.Australians may see the light after that, with a bit of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GerhardinOz Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 They only started installing RCD’s (Residual Current Devices) in homes a couple of years ago. Earth leakage devices have been in SA homes much longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndreaL Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 They only started installing RCD’s (Residual Current Devices) in homes a couple of years ago. Earth leakage devices have been in SA homes much longer.My hubby is a "lecky" ( Electrician) and has seen some true wiring horrors in the past 3 years.I keep thinking of a crime show I saw years ago where a husband killed his wife by throwing a bar heater or something into the the bath whilst she was bathing.If hubby takes a big insurance policy out on me I will start locking the door!AndreaL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mythryl Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Thankfully my wife's signature is easy to forge so I don't need her to sign the policy oh kuk inside voice Mythy...inside voice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndreaL Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Huck Huck! Remember " must think pure thoughts" "must think pure thoughts" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy2Bhere Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Foto vir die wat nog nie hierso is nie. Ja nee hierdie bly vir ons ook 'n weird idee!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndreaL Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 (edited) Good places to put plugs- on the outside patio for the beer fridge!Bad places to put plugs- Between the shower and basin!Reason for edit: I can't remove the doubled up picture!Don't worry-worked it out Edited November 21, 2008 by AndreaL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niemeerhier Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Well it seems as if those hair dryers are at least earthed unlike the ones you buy in shops here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GerhardinOz Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Well it seems as if those hair dryers are at least earthed unlike the ones you buy in shops here.No, they are not. Two pins Active and Neutral only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GerhardinOz Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Good places to put plugs- on the outside patio for the beer fridge!Bad places to put plugs- Between the shower and basin!Reason for edit: I can't remove the doubled up picture!Don't worry-worked it outIt looks like EVERYBODY agrees that having a plug in your bathroom is bad, but it doesn’t stop ANYBODY from using them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndreaL Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Some of us like to live on the edge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biltongboer Posted November 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Some of us like to live on the edge! We lived in dangerous Africa, didn't we? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryk and Yo Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Ek lag maar net, begin dink die Oz ding gaan nogals 'fun' wees, veral die eerste ruk om aan al hul 'dinge' gewoond te raak! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zorba Posted November 22, 2008 Report Share Posted November 22, 2008 I reckon that if I get electrocuted while using my hairdryer in the bathroom, at least my hair will look nice for my funeral!!zorba Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark and Muriel Posted November 23, 2008 Report Share Posted November 23, 2008 BB - what about the signs in the park warning the public about branches falling from the gum trees? An Oz from University of Melbourne was telling me last week that there was a case in Melbourne a while back where the local council was taken to court because they did not put signs up warning the public that limbs can break and fall out of the tree. Problems gets complicated when these signs must be visible to all park users - if a tree branch knocks you on the head and you cannot see a sign where the accident happened then the case still stands and the local council gets hammered.Then some wise arse lawyer commented that if the council puts such signs up then they have recognised the risk and must accept liability anyway, as the mere fact that they are placing such signs in public means that they accept that limbs will fall from the tree and members of the public are likely to get injured.So all the signs come down again.Back to square one. Now the lawyers keep making money and th elocal councils get hammered. There is apparently a case in a camping site somewhere in Victoria (I cannot rememebr names) where all the vegetation has been cleared to remove the risks. Now the public sit with a safer environment that looks crap. Very strange - some times this first worlds thing goes a bit screwy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.