Safe Work Australia, in collaboration with the Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency, have released a new guide and checklist specifically for HSRs.
The guide is based on the model WHS laws – some workplaces in Victoria are covered by the model WHS laws and regulated by Comcare – for example, Commonwealth Government workplaces, and some national employers such as Bank of Australia, Australia Post and Telstra. For workplaces under the jurisdiction of Victorian OHS laws you can contact WorkSafe for assistance in understanding the OHS requirements and safe work procedures that apply in the management of asbestos.
Health and safety representatives (HSRs) can play an important role in representing members of their work group and bringing issues, such as the risks of exposure to asbestos, to the attention of employers. Understanding more about asbestos and what employers must do to keep workers and others safe can help HSRs identify when things are not being managed well and when they might want to speak up.
The guide provides an overview of asbestos in the workplace to assist health and safety representatives (HSRs) to exercise their powers and functions to represent workers in their work group. It is for HSRs in workplaces where the workers they represent may be at risk of exposure to asbestos, focused on the built environment. It does not cover the requirements for those involved in licensed asbestos removal or the management of naturally occurring asbestos.
HSRs have powers to conduct workplace inspections, to issue provisional improvement notices (PINs), and to direct work to cease in unsafe work activities that pose an immediate threat to the health and safety of anyone.
According to SWA’s guide, elected HSRs play a key role in representing members of their work groups and alerting workers and employers to issues such as the risk of exposure to asbestos.
It notes that most asbestos-containing products in Australian buildings, like pipe lagging and roof and fence sheets, are between 30 and 100 years old and "degrading, increasing the risk of exposure to asbestos fibres".
Employers must consult their HSRs when identifying asbestos or other hazards, and assessing the risks; when making decisions about how to eliminate or minimise the risk of exposure to airborne asbestos fibres; when conducting activities that could damage or disturb asbestos-containing materials; or when proposing any changes that could affect the health or safety of workers.
Victorian HSRs can also find information and links to asbestos resources on our Asbestos in the workplace page | OHS Reps, including links to a checklist and HSR action plan.
Read more: Guidance for HSRs - Asbestos | SWA and ASSEA