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In 2003 a skin cancer judgment found skin cancer was ‘serious’ and ‘dangerous’ enough for a retired truck driver to sue his employer of 35 years for damages, putting sun protection and potentially UVR protection more generally, on the agenda for employers.
Excessive Ultra Violet Radiation (UVR) can cause skin cancer, skin ageing and eye damage, and may affect the immune system. Unprotected outdoor workers are most likely to accumulate excessive UV exposures during summer when, across most of Australia, during the hotter parts of the day, they can exceed UVR exposure limits in 5 to 10 minutes.
Over-exposure to industrial UVR sources, used for sterilisation in wastewater treatment or food manufacturing, curing of paints, inks and resins, welding, and other industrial activities, can also present a significant risk.
UVR exposure, like any other physical or chemical hazard, must be managed, starting with a risk assessment, to identify workers UVR exposures and the likelihood and consequence of exposure. This should then be followed by controls reducing UVR exposure as far as reasonably practicable, assigned in accordance with the hierarchy and built into organisational systems.
Controls protecting outdoor workers from UVR (coming with the added benefit of reducing heat stress and fatigue caused by excessive radiant heat) include:
Industrial sources may require specialist risk assessment. Controls include:
Head Office Melboune
139 Ormond Road Elwood, VIC 3184
Mornington Peninsula
20 Lister Avenue,
Sorrento,
VIC 3943
JTA Health, Safety & Noise Specialists acknowledges the Boon Wurrung People of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land on which the home of JTA resides. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and acknowledge and uphold their continuing relationship to this land.
