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Mining NZ
» Spring 2017
News »
New MinEx head eyes health and safety
Karen Phelps
Wayne Scott speaks at this year’s QuarryNZ conference: “The whole industry has an issue with non-compliant sites that we have to address”.
He’s been living in Australia for most of his life but
don’t hold that against him. Kiwi born Wayne Scott
is the new CEO for MinEx and he has some big
ideas about how to improve the industry’s health
and safety record.
One of the big draw cards for Wayne Scott to
take on his new role was simply a desire to return
to the country of his birth. He and his wife had
been visiting New Zealand regularly for the past
decade with an eye to returning one day. So when
the MinEx job became available it was a no brainer
for him to apply. And he hasn’t let the grass grow
under his feet since taking on his new role on 3
July spending most of his time to date on the road
talking to quarry owners around the country.
So what has he found out? Smaller operators
are struggling to meet new health and safety
regulations.
“There are a number of issues – lack of time,
not being aware of the regulations and what they
have to do and probably, in some cases, thinking it
doesn’t matter or they can avoid it.
“But the bottom line is the whole industry has
an issue with non-compliant sites that we have to
address,” he says.
He points to one small site he visited recently
down south that had not had a visit from WorkSafe
for 30 years.
Not that he’s pointing the finger but it does
indicate a lack of communication in the industry
with smaller owners, he says. He points to the fact
that three of the four sites where fatalities occurred
in 2015 were not on any industry data base.
“When a farmer, for example, who wants to
dig up gravel on his farm, applies to council no
one probably tells him about health and safety or
industry bodies they can join. That’s why I’ve been
getting out there on the road – to find out why these
people are struggling.”
Already Wayne has instigated a mentoring
scheme to help deal with the industry’s poor pass
rate for Certificate of Compliance (CoC) B Grade
oral examinations. It’s an informal process where
those who are worried about their oral examination
are paired up with someone in their area who has
already passed and is keen to help someone else.
“We know that the pass rate is very high for
those that re-sit this exam. This is because they
know what to expect and indicates it’s not a lack of
knowledge so much that has resulted in them failing
the first time,” says Wayne.
Another focus is the current MITO review
of some extractive unit standards alongside
WorkSafe’s current review of requirements for
Extractives’ CoCs.
The unit standards under review cover a range
of health and safety, technical, and management
skills and knowledge across the extractives sector.
The unit standard changes were prompted by
After Pike River the government acted quickly and
brought out new regulations but the time frame for
smaller operators, who don’t have the resources to
comply, is short.”
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QuarryNZ conference page 18
Wayne Scott’s qualifications include being a
chartered accountant and certified practicing
quarry manager together with a number of
industry-based qualifications extending to an
advanced diploma in extractive industries,
advanced risk management from the
University of Queensland.
Wayne has clocked up experience of
20 years in various management roles for
Holcim Australia (previously Readymix),
including managing quarry transport
operations in Sydney, and quarrying and
concrete operations in NSW’s Mid-North
Coast and in North Queensland.
Before becoming the new CEO for MinEx
Wayne’s previous role was Inspector
of Mines (Small Mines Strategy) for
Queensland’s Department of Natural
Resources and Mines for the past 8½ years.
In this role, he was responsible for
assisting small mine operators to meet their
safety and health obligations under state
mining legislation. He thinks this experience
will give him a good understanding of how
governments work particularly in terms of
health and safety. He has also served on
the IOQ Australia board for 9 years and was
president in 2012 / 2013.
Wayne’s World....
feedback from the NZ Mining Board of Examiners as
part of WorkSafe’s CoC review.
MITO convened a group of subject matter
experts from across the extractives industries to
prepare consultation drafts of the unit standards.
Wayne says he would favour role specific
qualifications rather than the broad sweeping
requirements at present.
Other initiatives Wayne has already rolled out
include a health and safety template, which was
released at the recent QuarryNZ conference to
provide a resource for small operators to manage
their health and safety. Wayne also has a number
of examples other templates up his sleeve from
his time in Australia he is keen to make available
in New Zealand. MinEx will also take a greater
role in publicising and distributing a worker health
guidance document being developed by WorkSafe.
The other major focus is on generally improving
the industry’s image after the spate of fatalities in
2015 and, of course, Pike River.
Wayne says the industry in Australia and New
Zealand is very similar, although acknowledges
that Australia is probably further ahead in terms
of health and safety largely as it experienced large
scale mining disasters earlier than New Zealand did.
He says health and safety legislation is generally
written with the larger players in mind which can
cause problems for smaller operators who struggle
to comply.
“After Pike River the government acted quickly
and brought out new regulations but the time frame
for smaller operators, who don’t have the resources
to comply, is short. It’s about working in small
increments [for smaller operators].
“We have to show we are a good industry to
work in and can get our health and safety to a level
society expects – firstly by lifting our compliance
and secondly with increased community
engagement. I’d like to see a greater industry driven
level of compliance. The industry needs to stand up
and ensure people who aren’t compliant are helped
to get there. There has to be improvement.”