Safety Blog

As we now understand, working with engineered stone can lead to deadly lung and respiratory diseases – including silicosis. Sadly, since the beginning of the year, Victoria has had four workers die from silica related illness and WorkSafe has accepted 59 claims for silica related diseases. New Regulations that came into effect on 15th November aim to reduce these numbers. The new regulations will also introduce additional oversight of high-risk crystalline silica work across all industries, including construction and earth resources.

The relationship between ventilation and the airborne transmission of COVID has been in the news over the last few months. Is this something that you should be considering? The simple answer is a resounding YES! A research article titled ‘A guideline to limit indoor airborne transmission of COVID-19’ says: ‘Airborne transmission arises through the inhalation of aerosol droplets exhaled by an infected person and is now thought to be the primary transmission route of COVID-19.’

JTA has seen an increased focus from regulators, government agencies and proactive organisations in seeking out a holistic approach to worker health management. Organisations looking to conform or align to AS/NZS ISO 450001 can incorporate a Health and Hygiene Management Plan into their management system.

The importation of asbestos is again finding its way into the news. In March, Border Force tested four shipments of imported products and all four were found to contain asbestos, whilst in September asbestos was found in building materials imported from China. This appears to be a continuing issue and one that puts Australian workers at risk from uncontrolled exposure to working with asbestos containing materials.

There is growing scientific acceptance by the WHO and others that COVID-19 transmission is much more airborne than previously thought.  Ventilation systems are key to the prevention of transmission of pollutants and recent research indicates that COVID-19, transmitted in aerosols from infected persons, is susceptible to control by ventilation.

On The Spot Fines For Workplace Safety Breaches have been introduced in Victoria this week.

Your innocuous looking backyard veggie patch could actually be the source of toxic lead poisoning according to an extensive study led by Professor Mark Taylor at Macquarie University and published in the journal Environment International.

In September 2019 on Radio National Breakfast Di White, mother of two sons aged 35 and 36, was asked how she reconciled one dying from Accelerated Silicosis and the other son recently being diagnosed with the disease.

The global reclassification of welding fume as “carcinogenic to humans” in 2017 confirmed what many had suspected for a long time and led to SafeWork Australia publishing a new Code of Practice on Welding Processes.

An article in The Australian on the 26 April quoted infectious disease experts as saying that conditions are ripe for a rebound flu season this year. It is expected that this year’s flu season will hit harder and later than in previous years.