Expansion of functions of ASEA

The ACTU and affiliates have been actively pursuing measures to prevent exposures to silica and the prevention of silica related diseases for decades. The includes but is not limited to:

• ACTU submission to the 2005 Senate Inquiry into Toxic Dust
• Mining unions have persistently pursued changes to the regulatory and compensation frameworks for miners exposed to coal and silica dust – this led to numerous Parliamentary inquiries and significant change in industry and medical practice
• Recent campaigns for the banning of engineered stone and;
• Reform of the regulatory framework for all high-risk silica processes.

The ACTU welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the consultation on the expansion of functions for the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency (ASEA), noting that ASEA would not have been established had it not been for the advocacy and campaigning by the ACTU, union affiliates, asbestos support groups, plaintiff lawyers and public health organisations. Similar organisations are involved in calling for better protections for all those workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica dust.