Monday, November 26, 2012

Mine workers and their families suffer the toll of shift work

Mine workers and their families suffer the toll of shift work:
Barbara Pocock, Director of the Centre for Work and Life at the University of South Australia, said mining workers had some of the worst work-life balance in the country.

“In our data this year we found the longest hours worked in Australian workplaces are worked by miners, and they have the most negative outcomes as consequence,” she said.

Dr Pocock said the impact on families could be severe.

“Even if the worker themselves loves their job and gets a lot out of what they do in the long hours they work, the pleasure is not shared by their partners or their children.”

“This is in accord with a range of international and national studies that show the consequences for the national health budget and for family life are significant and need to be attended to.”

4 comments:

  1. As all the recent reports and enquiries have slammed the terrible conditions in WA mental health and Federal mental health,what will become of all these workers and their families?
    They are just adding to a situation that is already unbearable.And as the State and Federal governments cannot keep up with any services or infrastructure that this "mining boom" is in dire need of,surely it is time to call it quits and get on with what we have built already.And the bloody dollar is heading for $1.10 and above,at which point we will have another disaster on our hands,one which any amount of mining will fail to fill.

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  2. Barnett makes a spectacle of himself in front of the oil and gas world.Now EVERYONE knows he is an idiot.

    SHELL’S Australian chair Ann Pickard speaking at the Deep Offshore Technology conference in Perth today.She said the Prelude LNG project would create $45 billion of GDP over the project’s 20-year life span, while contributing $12 billion in taxes to national coffers.

    Speaking at the Deep Offshore Technology conference in Perth today, she said the Prelude LNG project would create $45 billion of GDP over the project’s 20-year life span, while contributing $12 billion in taxes to national coffers.

    Pickard also hit back at claims that few Australians would see work on the project.

    “Prelude will create 1000 full-time jobs for the full lifetime of the project. There’s no boom-and-bust construction work, but long-term employment,” she said.

    “Most of the people on Prelude will be Australians. By 2015, I expect to see double the workforce here in Perth from 400 to 800 people and a lot of those new people will be working on Prelude.”

    BARNETT previously told ABC’s Q&A program that he did not favour the FLNG route.

    “If you think about it, not a single job in construction in Australia, not a single crew member on it for Australia … the two choices are floating LNG or develop at James Price Point,” he said.

    PICKARD“No, I don’t agree [that Prelude is environmentally unsafe]. It’s designed around safety and safety is absolutely paramount … in the design, so obviously I disagree,” she said.

    “Prelude will have its seven wells drilled by the Clyde Boudreaux. The rig will swing over to Prelude in January and start drilling then.

    “These are the first CAPPABLE WELLS for Australia.”

    Pickard also fended off the latest Browse speculation.

    Shell, a partner in the Browse LNG development – which at this point is slated to be developed at James Price Point – has been particularly vocal about the virtues of FLNG for offshore field development, leading to speculation it was pushing for the development of Browse via an FLNG facility.

    “Woodside in 2009 had retention lease terms put on it. Those retention lease terms in 2009 really could not consider floating, because FID hadn’t been taken on the first one.

    “So Woodside simply has to comply with the retention lease terms, so it’s James Price Point for Browse right now,” she said.

    However, she continued to talk up FLNG.

    “I think floating is an option for just about anything offshore Australia given the cost structure,” she said.

    Pickard tempered her enthusiasm for FLNG by telling the audience that onshore LNG still had a place.

    But she reinforced her argument that Australia had become the most costly place to develop onshore LNG projects.

    Australia’s tax structure, combined with the high cost of labour and materials, all contributed to the problematic environment, she said.

    BARNETT CARING FOR THE ENVIRONMENT - WHAT A JOKE.
    IT'S A WONDER HE DIDN'T TELL PICKARD,"LOOK IF YOU DONT BUILD AT JPP I WONT BE ABLE TO LOOK LITTLE BLACK KIDS IN THE EYE AGAIN."

    HE HAS BEEN EXPOSED FOR THE FOOL AND HYPOCRITE HE IS.

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    Replies
    1. http://www.wabusinessnews.com.au/article/Floating-LNG-to-be-saviour-of-Aust-industry-Shell?utm_source=DBA&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=article_click

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  3. First LNG cargo by Northern Sea Route.(NSR)

    As the LNG carrier loaded with a 135,000 cubic metres cargo from Norway proceeded to the Japanese import terminal at Tobata after traversing the Arctic Northern Sea Route (see map), the two Russian LNG projects in the Arctic region received a boost.

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    The number of plaintiffs in a lawsuit against Chevron over the Richmond refinery fire has swelled to more than 4,800 and could reach nearly 10,000, lawyers in the case said Tuesday.

    In a newly amended filing on behalf of 4,872 plaintiffs, Oakland attorney John Burris and Houston lawyer Tony Buzbee claim Chevron failed to ensure that its refinery was operating safely before the Aug. 6 fire.

    They cite 19 fires, spills and explosions at the refinery dating back to 1989. The suit also accuses Chevron of failing to alert residents for hours after workers found a 20-drip-per-minute leak on a corroded oil pipe that later ruptured and sparked the August fire.

    The company ran the refinery's crude-oil unit, "despite the obvious dangers involved," until the pipe broke open, Burris said.

    About 15,000 people sought treatment at hospitals after a cloud of black smoke billowed over Richmond and surrounding cities. No workers were injured.

    In a statement, Chevron officials noted that they had set up a claims process after the fire to compensate victims for medical problems or property loss. "We do not believe any lawsuits are necessary, and we will defend them vigorously," the statement said.

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