Live electrical work banned in WA

In the wake of the deaths of three electrical workers in Western Australia over the past two years, electrical work on energised installations will now be prohibited.

The state government is introducing a package of safety reforms that require main switches to be turned off while work is undertaken in a roof space.

One man died from an electric shock in 2013, while two other men were killed in an explosion at the Morley Galleria while conducting maintenance work earlier this year.

Commerce Minister Michael Mischin said, “Following these tragic accidents, I sought advice from EnergySafety, WorkSafe and the Commission for Occupational Safety and Health on how to prevent such incidents from happening again.

“I was informed that the main contributing factor in both cases was the fact the electrical equipment and installation were energised.”

The new measures include:

• introducing a general prohibition of electrical work on energised electrical installations, including in roof spaces. Exceptions will be provided where it is not possible to conduct work without the electrical installation being energised, such as testing, and specific control measures when operating under an exception;
• mandating that the main switch must be turned off whenever non-electrical work is being undertaken in a roof space. This will apply to all workers who are doing work other than electrical work in a roof space, such as installing insulation;
• providing a general exemption in these regulations where live electrical work must be conducted but that does not fit within the exception. Control measures will be specified in the exemption.

The Minister said feedback from the industry about the changes had been positive.

“Earlier this year, I asked EnergySafety to circulate a discussion paper to gauge the industry’s views about banning live electrical work,” he said.

“In general, they were very supportive of the proposal to prohibit live electrical work and sought assurances that special exceptions in certain cases would be factored in.

“I have requested EnergySafety and WorkSafe to prepare a preliminary impact assessment to enable the reforms to be implemented as soon as possible.”