In workplace
health and safety in Australia many current discussions revolve around harmonisation
of WHS. It has, to date, not exactly
been successful, but one only needs to look at legislative differences in other
areas to realise that it was probably never going to work. The various governments don’t even agree, for
instance, on the age or definition of a child, youth or “young person”.
Confusion
reigns. According to the United Nations
a person is a child until they are 15, at which time they become a youth until
they are 24. Presumably, by some
miracle, at 25 they are then adults. But
there is chaos amongst the Australian states and territories when deciding when
a child is no longer a child (for instance, in the ACT a child is a person
who is under 12 years old and a “young person” is between 12 and 17 years of
age, and in SA a child is anyone under the age of 18) and at what age a child or youth (or “young person”)
can legally do certain things.
A child may
not sit in the front seat of a car until age 4.
Very sensible. I would make that
18 or until they have their own car.
A child may
not be a pillion on a motorbike until age 8.
Except at 8 are their legs long
enough to reach the footrests? This
doesn’t appear to be a deciding factor.
Perhaps it’s left up to “common sense”.
It is recommended that children do not walk to
school alone until they are 10. Also
very sensible, not just from the safety perspective but most mums appear to
need more exercise than they get.
Most states
have some sort of legislation regarding the age of employment and just what
constitutes “employment”, with regulations being a lot tighter for children
under 15 except in Queensland where it’s 13.
WA goes one step further and adds that “A child is considered to
be employed if engaged to carry out work in a business, trade or occupation
carried on for profit, whether or not they are paid or receive any other kind
of reward.” (Someone better tell the WA kids
that they might be working for nothing…)
At 16, in
WA, ACT, NSW, NT, VIC and QLD a youth can legally have sex. In TAS and SA it’s 17. And no-one can leave school until they are 17
unless they are in training or full time paid employment.
However, they
can’t drive a car or ride a 50cc scooter in NT until they are 16 ½, 18 in VIC
and 17 elsewhere, and can’t ride a motorbike on the road until they are 18. Or operate a forklift or drink in a bar or
marry or vote.
So let’s
recap. In general, a “young person” can work
at 13 or 15, have sex at 16 even though they are still at school and sex education
is not compulsory, ride a scooter or drive a car – any car - in traffic at 17, but
can’t ride a motorbike – up to 250cc - or legally drink until they are 18. Hmmmmm.
Yet “parental
responsibilities”, everywhere it seems, extend until the child/young
person/youth is 18, whether or not those responsibilities have been superseded
by legislation, unless the child/young person/youth is married or in a de facto
relationship.
Perhaps,
then, it isn’t any wonder, in a system of government which is based on
independence of state and territory, that the pipe dream of harmonised WHS
legislation was never going to work in reality.
Pity. It could’ve been great.
http://www.business.vic.gov.au/operating-a-business/employing-and-managing-people/employing-children
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