Call for submissions — workplace chemical exposure

Safe Work Australia is inviting opinion about workplace exposure standards for hazardous chemicals used in workplaces in a public consultation process open for comment until 18 December 2015. A copy of the discussion paper is available here.

Exposure standards refer to the airborne concentration of individual chemicals in the worker’s breathing zone which should not cause adverse health effects or undue discomfort to nearly all workers.

Exposure standards are specified in the model Work Health and Safety Regulations as mandatory legal limits to protect the health of workers and minimise exposure to chemicals in the workplace.

Safe Work Australia is holding this consultation process to examine the current role of exposure standards and how they can be reviewed and maintained. The agency would particularly like to hear your views about:

• how exposure standards are currently used;
• the impacts of compliance for  businesses and workers;
• the role of exposure standards in the regulatory framework; and
• how Australia’s exposure standards can be reviewed and maintained in a timely and efficient way.

Submissions are now being accepted via the Safe Work Australia website.