Published in the June 2011 Australian Longwall Magazine

In years gone by one of the biggest challenges facing the NSW coal industry workforce was pneumoconiosis, commonly referred to as Black Lung.

In 1946, 16% of the workforce suffered from the disease, with many workers diagnosed by the age of 30.

In that same year, legislation was introduced to establish the Joint Coal Board with the aim of implementing sound welfare practices for employees.

In 2001, the Joint Coal Board made way for Coal Services Pty Limited and while the structure of the organisation has changed, the mission remains the same.

The NSW coal industry has come a long way since 1946; there have been no reported cases of Black Lung in New South Wales for more than 20 years.

This is in stark contrast to the United States of America, where Black Lung remains a major killer.

New South Wales’ eradication of this deadly disease has not happened by chance.

These results are a reflection of Coal Services’ delivery of their statutory responsibilities and employers and mineworkers working together for the betterment of our industry.

Despite this progress, the NSW coal industry faces many challenges in the future.

One of those challenges is the sustained health of our workforce.

As such, now more than ever, it is important that we unite as an industry to continue to ensure that we are protecting the health, safety and wellbeing of our workforce.

Recently, the NSW government gazetted Order 41 to operate under the powers of the Coal Industry Act 2001. Order 41 covers health monitoring requirements for NSW coal mineworkers and enforces both pre-placement medicals and periodic health assessments.

The pre-placement medical assessment is designed to assess an applicant’s physical ability to safely perform the tasks associated with the position for which they are being considered.

The assessment is also important as it allows the gathering of baseline medical data that can be used to monitor a worker’s occupational health during their working life.

CS Health doctors specialise in occupational medicine or have occupational medical experience.

Occupational medicine is a specialty in its own right and as such these doctors are the best equipped to perform pre-employment occupational medicals.

Further, CS Health doctors have a thorough understanding of the coal mining industry.

This knowledge allows them to be sure that each client is medically assessed against the requirements of the proposed position and the industry requirements as a whole.

As required by Order 41, during the pre-placement medical assessment CS Health’s doctor and nurse will assess a range of health factors including lung function, hearing, vision, musculoskeletal capacity, neurological system and cardiovascular system.

A chest x-ray is also undertaken and serves as a baseline for future health surveillance.

Our doctor will finally review the applicant’s medical history, conduct a complete physical examination and provide an opinion regarding the client’s suitability for the proposed role.

A vital component of Order 41 is the requirement for coal workers to undertake a health surveillance medical assessment every three years (otherwise referred to as a periodic health assessment).

As most occupational illnesses take many years to develop, regular health surveillance allows for early detection and intervention with the goal of ensuring that a coal worker can continue to work safely.

This is particularly important for workers as they age and assists in ensuring good health and quality of life.

Under Order 41, CS Health’s occupational health nurses conduct a medical that includes an assessment of lung function, hearing and vision.

The new process though has been expanded to include the gathering of information on a workers exposure to musculoskeletal hazards, fatigue, emotional wellbeing, alcohol use, skin disease and a cardiovascular risk profile.

Also included in the periodic health assessment is a chest x-ray, on average each five years, to ensure no adverse health effects are occurring from any possible dust exposure.

The pre-employment medical assessment and periodic health surveillance assessment as required by Order 41 are vital components in ensuring coal workers’ health and safety are protected.

De-identified reports gathered through the implementation of Order 41 will ensure workers’ ongoing health is protected and that diseases such as pneumoconiosis or Black Lung do not re-emerge within the coal mining workforce.

Medicals undertaken by CS Health come with no direct charge to either the worker or operator, when they have a workers compensation insurance policy with Coal Mines Insurance (CMI).

Importantly, the periodic medicals are not designed to be a ‘fit for work’ assessment and individual’s medical details are confidential and dealt with in accordance with Federal Privacy Laws.

Conducting medicals on the coal mine workforce is crucial to sustaining workers’ health. However, medicals are not the only solution to ensuring workers’ health; a holistic approach must be adopted.

As an industry, we must be proactive and ensure that the day to day working conditions at minesites are not putting our workers at risk.

The national harmonisation of safety legislation and mine safety framework is generally seen as a benefit to doing business across Australia and ensuring uniform safety protection for all employees, but it does carry the risk of losing some important gains in specific areas.

The spectacular success in eliminating lung disease from NSW coal mines is too important to leave to the negotiation process where trade-offs may be required.

This is the main reason that the legislation and practices which have contributed to this outcome are enshrined in the stand-alone provisions of Order 42, which the Minister for Primary Industries approved by notice in the Government Gazette on February 11, 2011.

Order 42 gives powers to Coal Services inspectors to enter coal mine operations for the purposes of monitoring airborne dust, collecting dust samples, and other functions and activities necessary to monitor airborne dust and to encourage world’s best practise dust control, which will of course protect workers’ health.

The purpose of the order is to ensure that the previous system that has protected mineworkers’ health and eliminated lung disease remains effective.

The order’s introduction will have a positive impact on the NSW coal industry as continuing to monitor dust levels will ensure that the coal mining industry does not return to an era where Black Lung was prevalent.

Generally speaking, the workplace has a significant impact on people’s health and wellbeing and the NSW coal industry is not immune.

Poor management of workplace health can lead to work-related ill health, however, the introduction of Order 41 and Order 42 will have a measurable impact on the wellbeing of the NSW coal industry workforce.

Employers must ensure that they adhere to the guidelines stipulated in the new legislation, not only because it is their duty of care, but because it will aid the future prosperity of our industry.