In this episode, the first of a two-part series, guest Jackii Shepherd, Safe Work Australia’s Director of Occupational Hygiene Policy and Team Manager for their Workplace Exposure Standards Review joins host Mark Reggers to discuss the exposure standards review process.

Under the model work health and safety laws, a workplace exposure standard is an airborne concentration of a chemical that a worker cannot be exposed above in the workplace to protect them from harm. However, because science and technology are always evolving, so too does our understanding of chemicals, the way we use them and their impacts on health; as a result, a review process is essential.

Guest Bio:

Jackii Shepherd (pictured left) is the Director, Occupational Hygiene Policy at Safe Work Australia and leads the team managing Safe Work Australia’s review of the workplace exposure standards.

Jackii has a degree in Applied Science (Human Biology), post-graduate qualifications in epidemiology and biostatistics and training in medical laboratory science and toxicology.

She is a Member of the Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists (AIOH) and the Australasian College of Toxicology and Risk Assessment (ACTRA).

In this episode, part 1 of 2, Mark & Jackii discuss the following:

• Who is Safe Work Australia?
• What is an exposure standard, and how are they used in workplaces?
• Are there different types of workplace exposure standards?
• Do notations fall under the exposure standards review process?
• How were the previous exposure standards set and reviewed?
• What triggered this review process to happen?
• What is the process that has happened so far to this point?
• How did Safe Work Australia engage the public in this review?
• What does Safe Work Australia do with all this consultation information?
• What takeaway points would you want to leave with our listeners?
• Where can listeners get additional information regarding the workplace exposure standard review process?
• How can our listeners get in contact with Safe Work Australia?

Since the implementation of exposure standards, workplaces, chemicals and the way we do things have changed, resulting in many Workplace Exposure Standards (WES) becoming outdated. In 2018, Safe Work Australia commenced the exposure standard review process, engaging experts to examine the WES of approximately 700 substances used or produced in Australia. The review intends to deliver a list of health-based recommendations through an independent peer-review process supported by a rigorous scientific approach, defined by what we now know about these chemicals and their uses that can pose significant health risks to workers. Tune in as we explore the review process methodology that sets forward the recommendations on workplace exposure limits to protect workers from exposure to airborne hazardous chemicals in the workplace.

Additional Resources:

• Podcast Transcript
• Safe Work Australia – Workplace exposure standards review methodology
• Safe Work Australia – Workplace exposure for chemicals
• Safe Work Australia – Workplace exposure standards review methodology collection
• Safe Work Australia – Hazardous Chemical Information System (HCIS)

Contact a 3M Safety Specialist at scienceofsafetyanz@mmm.com for more information.