Workers 'in dark' over occupational illnesses claims

By ANGELA GREGORY health reporter

Workers are being kept in the dark about their right to claim for occupational illnesses such as asthma, says New Zealand's top unionist.

Ross Wilson, president of the Council of Trade Unions, says the Accident Compensation Corporation has cut costs by failing to publicise people's right to claim for occupational illnesses.

He said occupational diseases were an ongoing concern, but there was a great deal of ignorance about workplace health risks.

Mr Wilson said 400 people died each year from work related exposure to hazards like cancer-causing asbestos, and research suggested one in five asthma sufferers got their asthma from their work.

Some ACC administrators had never believed occupational diseases should be included in compensation legislation.

"There is the cost factor ... they don't want to encourage claims and an ignorant population is one way to do that.

"ACC has never spent the money promoting the claims or assisting people entitled to establish them."

He said ACC made it difficult for workers to take valid claims which required proof of workplace exposure to hazards and causation.

The hazard also had to be shown as endemic to the particular type of occupation, with exposure greater than it was in other employment areas.

Mr Wilson said the number of occupational illness cases ACC processed would only be the tip of the iceberg because of the huge under reporting.

ACC was not releasing data that could identify which employers were failing to protect employees from the health hazards, with resistance from business groups that objected to employers being identified.

He said many doctors failed to diagnose diseases caused in the workplace and they often didn't tell workers they could lodge a claim.

"Most New Zealand doctors have a very small amount of training that relates to occupational diseases, so they are not alert to thinking of it."

Spokeswoman, Kathryn Griffiths, said ACC worked closely with health providers to inform them of the claims process, including that for occupational diseases.

"A lot of people don't want to know about claims until they have been hurt."

Ms Griffiths said a lot of work was also done in the area by ACC injury prevention officers.

The criteria to establish occupational illness was stringent. It had to be to prove the workplace link.

"The harsh reality is that it is very difficult to prove asthma in the workplace if, for example, you are a smoker ... a lot of people's situations muddle that."

She said an independent panel advised ACC on such cases.

Mr Wilson was also critical of the Department of Occupational Safety and Health, which he said was not rigorous in its enforcement in the area of occupational disease.

"Employers are not being visited by inspectors, or are getting away with warnings not prosecutions."

Mr Wilson said OSH had the primary role of promoting healthy workplaces and had to ensure employers identified hazards and took practical steps to protect the safety and health of employees.

He said the CTU, meanwhile, did its best to educate workers, but had limited resources.

Green Party ACC spokeswoman Sue Bradford, who has been pushing for a panel to advise ACC Minister Lianne Dalziel on diagnostic criteria for acceptable occupational disease claims, said such a panel was long overdue.

The panel of medical experts, and union and employer representatives, would establish a scientific assessment of occupational illness.

Ms Bradford said the inadequate recognition of occupational disease had been a problem for years.

Diseases like asthma were being caused in the workplace and workers should be eligible for ACC and support, she said.

OSH senior health policy adviser Frank Darby acknowledged that the notification system for occupational diseases had not worked as well as it should.

Difficulties had included time lapses between the exposure to workplace hazards and the manifestation of the disease.

Mr Darby said OSH was soon to appoint a registrar to oversee the notification process and to promote the system to doctors.

nzherald.co.nz/health