Nail Clinics and OH&S

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Shannow

Shannow

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Seeing as it's only a couple weeks to Christmas, and the children needed bikes, and the boss needed a handbag...we braved the shops.

Interestingly, everyone was too busy shopping, and lunch at our favourite restaurant was incredibly spacious with only a couple of customers.

One of the shops has been turned into a nail clinic. half glass walled so that we can all share in the splendour of a half dozen women being manicured and pedicured by 8 busy technicians.

Opened my eyes somewhat into the processes.

As I walked past the door, one of the women came out.

Thanks goodness they've banned smoking in malls down here. A stray spark and the building would have erupted.

Haven't smelled such strong solvent fumes since I sprayed my hoodlining with vinyl spray as a teenager.

Must be a serious OH&S risk for the technicians.
 
wasn't going to mention that part of it.

might have got the thread locked or something.
 
Originally Posted By: sprintman
All Asian here and non award rates. Don't know how they get away with it


Sprintman, would you please translate "non award rates" to North American?
 
Well it really means "not in accordance with the award"

Which the bozo's who are now sitting on the side bench used to tell us "Could, in fact, be higher than the award rate depending on skills."
 
Wha happened in OZ? I always thought OZ was working class friendly? How much below minimum wage labor is condoned in your former Island prison? Do you have a huge pool of illegals to abuse like the US does?
 
The new govt will be better placed to enforce award rates (minimum wage) but the nail prisons seem to get away with bulk asians (Thai's??) paid below the award. The workers seem happy though but then I guess living in Paradise why wouldn't you be?
 
After getting several of those gusts of carcinogens I did some research on OSHA's regulation of nail salons. It is somewhat underwhelming. If you read between the lines they admit the hazards, but just say the shops should do what they can with regard to ventilation. Not nearly as strong as I would expect from a regulatory agency.
 
Originally Posted By: andyd
Wha happened in OZ? I always thought OZ was working class friendly? How much below minimum wage labor is condoned in your former Island prison? Do you have a huge pool of illegals to abuse like the US does?


andy, there's no huge pool of illegals, so the previous mob had to pass legislation to take advantage of our youth (Workchoices). No under the table underpayments, these were completely above board with Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs) becoming a contract between the worker and employer.

The employers (some) made great advantage of the ability to cut penalty rates for an increase in hourly rate (cutting double time for 1c/hour was deemed a reasonable bargain by the Workplace Authority).

The employees of "The Mean Fiddler" (an Irish Pub in western Sydney) turned up on the busiest day of the year, ANZAC Day, expecting their double time. Most of these are uni students, who work to stay at uni. When they arrived, they were presented with their new AWA. No penalty rates for any shift, including the one that they turned up to start. The Mean Fiddler still charged their patrons a 10% public holiday surcharge.

"Chillis" restaurant introduced their new AWA that required ther waitresses to turn up for their designated shift and sit "on the bench". As trade increased for the evening, the waitresses were "called up", their pay started from when they are called up, NOT when their shift started. Further, they had to provide their own float of $50 change for their shift, and walk around all evening with their total individual takings in their apron. At the end of their shift, their "Bill" was reconciled, and any shortfall came out of the float that they provided. Anything more than the $50 (say a walkout), was taken from their wages for the evening.

Service stations started taking drive-offs out of the pay of the checkout attendant. Bear in mind that a tank of diesel (75 litres) is $105.

That was the caber that broke the camel's back to the subjects of Oz. Govt was thrashed, largely as a backlash against I.R. policy.
 
Originally Posted By: Shannow


Service stations started taking drive-offs out of the pay of the checkout attendant. Bear in mind that a tank of diesel (75 litres) is $105.


Without giving the attendants the power to arrest drive offs, this kind if thing is obviously unfair, and should never be done in any management situation.
 
Under Oz law, they are not allowed to leave the register while petrol is flowing. They have control of the emergency stop for all bowsers.
 
as a chemical engineer, I havbe to deal with the safety considerations of working, storing, and dealing with various forms of hazmat.

A great example - the hoops we have to jump through to get and use acetone.

Odors of any sort are to be traced to the source, and the source contained, moved to a hood if possible, or at least found and labeled, then to be mtigated as soon as possible.

These nail places (and hair salons too) just stink. If it was a chemical lab., the lab would be fined to a ridiculous level. It would be labeled as unacceptable.

The only R&D labs that Ive ever been in that have vapors and odors nearing the level of a nail salon are fuel analysis labs. And they are, IMO, less obnoxious.

JMH
 
Two different subjects really....(at least)

1) The enclosed release (oxymoron?) of volatile solvents is totally unacceptable and puts the workers and general public in danger. No good, if there aren't laws there should be and they should be enforced evenly as possible.

2) Minimum wage. I am very much opposed to minimum wage laws, but that's all I will say with out doing the BIG P
 
We've got a programme called the "New Inventors" on most weeks where people pit their inventions against a panel.

Some of them are quire good.

There was a "manicure" table invention on a few months back that I thought at the time was an answer waiting for a question. It had a grille, over which the work was carried out. An induced draft was pulled through the grill.

The nail and plastic dust was picked up by a HEPA filter. The air then went through (I think) a carbon filter before being ducted outdoors.

I now have a better respect for that bloke's invention.

On the same show, they demonstrated the "Thompson Coupling", a local inventor's answer for a constant velocity universal joint with significant axial load capacity.

I thought it was a sound design, and was thinking of investing $5k...never got around to it.

$5k 18 months ago would have turned into $200k at present prices.
 
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