Work health and safety data launched for electricians
Safe Work Australia has published a WHS profile of electricians that outlines the nature of risks they most frequently encounter while performing their duties. Using Safe Work Australia’s Beta Occupational Hazards Dataset and National Dataset for Compensation-based Statistics, and ABS Census data, this profile highlights how electricians have a higher level of exposure to job hazards and body positioning compared to all other occupations.
The data has revealed that over the last 10 years, ‘body stressing’ has been the most common type of work-related injury or illness for electricians (averaging 35.1% of all serious claims during the period). The frequency of serious claims for electricians that experienced electrocution or shock from electric currents is approximately six times greater than the average across all occupations.
Installing electrical equipment may involve working on rooftops, ladders or elevated structures, making ‘falls from height’ another risk that affects electricians. These hazards have led to fatal injuries; over the past 10 years, 44 electricians died from traumatic injuries at work. Of these, 23 were a result of electrocution and a further nine resulted from falls from height.
These insights could help persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs) and workers understand and manage the risks of electrical work.
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