What’s new
New WA WHS Regs – Audiometric testing
The new WA Work Health & Safety Regulations 2021 Finally, after many years of promise, the new nationally harmonized Work Health & Safety (WHS) Regulations are planned for release in Western Australia from November 2021. With these regulations will come some significant changes. This article refers to those changes around Noise and Audiometric Testing. For…
Read MoreAudiometric tests – WA WHS regulations
Audiometric tests – planning for the new WHS regulations It is expected that the new WA Work Health Safety (WHS) regulations for audiometric tests will reflect those of harmonised States such as NSW and QLD. Under these WHS regulations, the employer is required to provide audiometric testing at least every 2 years if hearing protection…
Read MoreWorkCover hearing test
What is a WorkCover hearing test? In WA, a WorkCover hearing test is governed by WorkCover WA. Under the Workers’ Compensation and Injury Management Act 1981, it is compulsory for employers to arrange and pay for baseline hearing tests for all workers in prescribed “noisy” workplaces. All workers employed in a prescribed workplace for the…
Read MoreNoise Surveys – WA regs
Noise in the workplace is a major cause of deafness in Western Australia. If people’s ears are exposed to loud noise continually over a period of time, the nerve cells in the inner ear may eventually die and not respond to sound. This condition is called noise induced hearing loss (NIHL). NIHL loss cannot be…
Read MoreSkin Screening – a great Health and Wellbeing initiative
Melanoma is the most common cancer diagnosed in Australian men aged 25-49 years and second most common cancer in women aged 25-49 years, after breast cancer. Approximately two in three Australians will be diagnosed with melanoma or other types of skin cancer by the time they are 70 years old. These age groups may represent…
Read MoreHearing Test Truck – Pilbara Road Trip
Mid West – Gascoyne – Pilbara – West Kimberley In August our Hearing Test Truck we will be heading North offering onsite work health services including WorkCover WA hearing tests and Noise Surveys in the Pilbara, Gascoyne, Mid West and West Kimberley regions. We offer these road trips to give you the most cost effective opportunity…
Read MoreWhat is a safe level of noise at work?
According to WorkSafe WA, a safe level of noise, to protect the most noise-sensitive people from any hearing loss during a working lifetime, would be an average over the work shift of about 75 dB(A). People vary in their susceptibility to noise damage. Noise Induced Hearing Loss One of the main effects of noise at work is noise-induced…
Read MoreManaging noise – WA mining industry
This week, WA’s Department of Mines Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) issued Mines Safety Bulletin no. 169 focused on the dangers of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) in mines. Exposure to prolonged or excessive noise has been proven to cause permanent hearing loss and tinnitus (a high-pitched ringing in the ears). Both conditions are debilitating with…
Read MoreWorkSafe inspection – WA schools
WorkSafe have announced an inspection program looking at safety and health issues for workers in WA schools. The program will include both private and public schools in Perth and regional WA. It will continue until the end of the 2019/20 financial year. WorkSafe will expand it’s previous inspection program that was looking at hazards facing…
Read MoreSilica dust exposure
The Cancer Council says approximately 587,000 Australian workers were exposed to silica dust while on the job in 2011. Of these, 5,758 are estimated to develop lung cancer in the future as a result of that exposure. Silica dust is harmful when inhaled into your lungs. As it is 100 times smaller than a grain of sand,…
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