No, we are serious!

I’m sure you’ve all heard of the Pokémon Go craze taking over our street, parks, shopping centres, and sometimes even in our own front yards. They aren’t hard to spot, they are usually in small groups, or gaggles as I’ve named them, and they aren’t necessarily just young people, the odd mum & dad, nana etc. have been seen in these gaggles; anyhow, they are the ones wandering around, heads down, being guided by the thrill of catching little Pokémon balls and then to go on to hurl, all virtual of course, at characters named Squirtle (please feel free to laugh), Butterfree (why anyone would go Butterfree is anyone’s guess), Jigglypuff and sidekick Wigglytuff.

All sounds like a lot of fun (though who I am to judge) well, does it really? WorkSafe WA has actually found a more serious side to this craze, having issued a warning to these Pokemon Go players. The recent warning is to these Pokemon Go players to heed warnings and stay clear of Construction Sites, following reports that players have been accessing them to capture these virtual characters. Not only are these players risking their own lives by entering these Constructions Sites, but also risking trespass charges.

The WorkSafe WA Commissioner Lex McCulloch says “Employers who have control over construction sites are also reminded that they have a duty of care under workplace safety and health laws to ensure that people not involved with the site are not exposed to the hazards there”. This usually means adequate fencing & signage on large construction sites, at least warning signs on smaller sites. However, reports are that these people are ignoring these signs and barriers and entering regardless. Commissioner Lex McCulloch asks that parents talk to their children playing the game to warn them against entering hazardous construction sites.

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