Cancer in Firefighters May Be Work Related
Under current law in Western Australia, firefighters must prove a valid connection of their illness to their work duties before they can receive compensation.Seemingly in an effort to acknowledge studies that have been performed to assess the dangers and repercussions of a dangerous work-environment, parliament has considered progress in the area of work-related injury compensation.
A bill introduced to Parliament in the summer of 2013 recognises 12 types of cancer to be accepted as work related for firefighters. Its goal is to make the process of receiving compensation for site related injuries more direct and less complex.
List of cancers and qualifying period
|
Disease |
Qualifying period |
|
Brain cancer Bladder cancer Kidney cancer Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma Leukaemia Breast cancer Testicular cancer Multiple myeloma Primary site prostate cancer Primary site ureter cancer Primary site colorectal Primary site oesophageal cancer |
5 years 15 years 15 years 15 years 5 years 10 years 10 years 15 years 15 years 15 years 15 years 25 years |
If a worker contracts cancer outside the 12 confirmed types related to carcinogens present in a firefighting environment, the duty to prove a connection between the illness will be their own.
(Source: SafetyCulture.com.au)
