The concept of zero harm has gained much traction, but ALISON MOLLOY says its unintended consequences for workers calls for a re-think.

Organisations spend too much time on bullying policies and not enough on identifying and eliminating risk factors, argue GEOFF PLIMMER and HAMISH CRIMP.

The best way to avoid physical or psychological risks, says EMMA SAUNDERS, is to design these out of your workplace. Even if – especially if – it is your own business.

TIM BENTLEY and DAVID TAPPIN introduce the New Zealand Workplace Barometer project to monitor psychosocial risks and their impact.

Peer support programmes can be a useful alternative to traditional employee assistance programmes, argues DEBORAH CAMERON.

SHAUN ROBINSON introduces the new Five Ways to Wellbeing at Work Toolkit and suggests some questions to ask.

An award-winning health & safety representative can’t quite understand what all the fuss is about. JACKIE BROWN-HAYSOM reports.

PETER BATEMAN talks to Steven Carden, chief executive of Landcorp Farming, and winner of the leader category at this year’s awards.

It is 50 years since the publication of the Woodhouse Report, which led to the creation of the ACC scheme. We invited three people to mark the occasion, starting with SUSAN ST JOHN.

We asked three people to respond to this statement: “The necessary precondition for genuine worker involvement in health & safety is trust. Discuss.”

Want a free (but not necessarily easy) way to tackle stress, productivity and absenteeism? JARROD HAAR advocates giving people more autonomy over how they work.

JOE SCHUMACHER describes how a diverse group has been selected for maximum diversity and then empowered to deliver key H&S policy initiatives.

The new SafePlus toolkit has recently been launched. MALCOLM MACMILLAN describes how it works and says it is set to shake up health and safety culture in New Zealand.

A wellness programme that includes fatigue management and cancer screening took out the wellbeing category in this year’s NZ Workplace Health & Safety Awards. JACKIE BROWN-HAYSOM reports.

CHARLES McGUINNESS suggests that if the cost of minimising a task’s risk is assessed as “grossly disproportionate” then the answer is clear: eliminate the task.

Exposure to wood dust can cause cancer and other respiratory effects. JEROEN DOUWES reports on simple interventions among joiners which significantly reduced exposures.

The HSW Act allows the regulator to accept an enforceable undertaking (EU) as an alternative to a prosecution in court. MICHAEL HARGEAVES explains.

How to better tackle exposures harmful to health in the construction sector? DARREN LEWIS shares some ideas from overseas.

GREG DEARSLY challenges tertiary education institutions offering H&S courses to embrace accreditation and the changing skill set required of H&S practitioners.

Deviant or risky behaviours can easily become normalised. TIM BURFOOT recalls one such occasion from his days navigating a bulk carrier close to shore.