Electron Issue 098
Keeping you up to date with the latest regulatory changes, exam reports, technical issues, consultation results and other issues affecting electrical workers - published October 2019.
Presiding Member's update
Mental wellbeing is not an easy subject to discuss but it is one that needs to be openly addressed within the construction sector as international research shows that construction workers suffer from higher rates of suicide and mental health issues compared to the general population or other industries. This month we are privileged to have been given the opportunity to learn first-hand from Dave Burt in an article on how mental health can impact on an electrical worker's life and to be given some valuable insights into how to get help. Take the time to read the article and if you or any of your colleagues need help make sure you reach out to one of the many organisations that can provide assistance.
Day to day, mental wellbeing can impact on the work an electrical worker carries out. The Board often deals with complaints where the root cause of a compliance failure was the impact that external events were having on the practitioner’s life. Family, financial, work and health pressures can, from time to time, consume a person’s thoughts and the consequences of those distractions can, when it comes to prescribed electrical work, be catastrophic. Being mentally present and focused on the task is important. If that is not possible then it is best to leave a complex task to another day or to instruct someone else to complete it.
Mel Orange
Presiding Member
Shining a light on a dark time – an interview with Dave Burt
Dave Burt is an owner and director of Team Cabling, an electrical business that operates in Auckland, Waikato, Wellington and Christchurch.
Electron spoke with Dave about how struggling with depression led to him opening up, writing a book and how having an understanding of mental health struggles has changed how he runs his businesses.
What is the Electricity and Gas High-risk Database?
The Electricity and Gas High-risk Database holds records of gas and electrical work that has been classified as high-risk. This database was created on 1 July 2013 and is administered by Energy Safety, a division of WorkSafe.
Construction Sites: AS/NZS 3012:2010
AS/NZS 3012:2010 Electrical installations—Construction and demolition sites, applies to a wide range of electrical installations associated with construction and demolition. It must be applied in association with AS/NZS 3000:2007 when construction work is being carried out and the situations where it is applied are diverse.
Penalty, Costs and Publication
This article continues the series of articles about the disciplinary process in the Electricity Act. It looks at the Board’s disciplinary powers following a finding that an electrical worker has committed a disciplinary offence.
Disciplinary cases
The Board held five hearings during its Board meeting in July. Two cases involved transpositions. These are always serious and disconcerting matters.