❓ Hon George Cash asks about compensation for former Agriculture Protection Board workers exposed to chemicals. Hon Kim Chance responds, outlining the process and delays in processing claims, expressing disappointment and a commitment to resolving the issues.
AnsweredQoN 478Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
In November 2002, the minister appointed a five-member scientific panel to analyse potential links between chemical spraying and long-term illnesses among former Agriculture Protection Board workers in the Kimberley. In March 2003 the scientific panel submitted its interim report, and in February 2004 Cabinet considered the panel’s final report. Will the minister advise the current position on compensation for those former APB workers? Hon KIM CHANCE
AnswerView source ↗
One of the key functions, if not the key function, of the appointment of the expert panel was to assist the process of those affected workers making workers compensation claims that would have otherwise been extraordinarily difficult given that the occupational exposure occurred between 1975 and 1985. It was fairly clear to us that any workers compensation claim made for occupational exposure that long ago was highly unlikely to be successful. One of the key reasons for the appointment of that panel was to try to find a pathway forward to enable those claims to be successful. Information supplied by an earlier report indicated that a form of compensation should be paid. That report left the matter hanging and did not indicate how it should proceed. However, it seemed to us that it was a reference to workers compensation payments. Despite the pessimism expressed in the first report that it would be difficult to find a pathway for those workers who had cancer and for those people who were dependants of workers who had died as a result of cancer, the panel of experts ultimately reported that there would be a relatively easily defined pathway. Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
Hon KIM CHANCE replied : One of the key functions, if not the key function, of the appointment of the expert panel was to assist the process of those affected workers making workers compensation claims that would have otherwise been extraordinarily difficult given that the occupational exposure occurred between 1975 and 1985. It was fairly clear to us that any workers compensation claim made for occupational exposure that long ago was highly unlikely to be successful. One of the key reasons for the appointment of that panel was to try to find a pathway forward to enable those claims to be successful. Information supplied by an earlier report indicated that a form of compensation should be paid. That report left the matter hanging and did not indicate how it should proceed. However, it seemed to us that it was a reference to workers compensation payments. Despite the pessimism expressed in the first report that it would be difficult to find a pathway for those workers who had cancer and for those people who were dependants of workers who had died as a result of cancer, the panel of experts ultimately reported that there would be a relatively easily defined pathway. Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
One of the key functions, if not the key function, of the appointment of the expert panel was to assist the process of those affected workers making workers compensation claims that would have otherwise been extraordinarily difficult given that the occupational exposure occurred between 1975 and 1985. It was fairly clear to us that any workers compensation claim made for occupational exposure that long ago was highly unlikely to be successful. One of the key reasons for the appointment of that panel was to try to find a pathway forward to enable those claims to be successful. Information supplied by an earlier report indicated that a form of compensation should be paid. That report left the matter hanging and did not indicate how it should proceed. However, it seemed to us that it was a reference to workers compensation payments. Despite the pessimism expressed in the first report that it would be difficult to find a pathway for those workers who had cancer and for those people who were dependants of workers who had died as a result of cancer, the panel of experts ultimately reported that there would be a relatively easily defined pathway. Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
Hon KIM CHANCE replied : One of the key functions, if not the key function, of the appointment of the expert panel was to assist the process of those affected workers making workers compensation claims that would have otherwise been extraordinarily difficult given that the occupational exposure occurred between 1975 and 1985. It was fairly clear to us that any workers compensation claim made for occupational exposure that long ago was highly unlikely to be successful. One of the key reasons for the appointment of that panel was to try to find a pathway forward to enable those claims to be successful. Information supplied by an earlier report indicated that a form of compensation should be paid. That report left the matter hanging and did not indicate how it should proceed. However, it seemed to us that it was a reference to workers compensation payments. Despite the pessimism expressed in the first report that it would be difficult to find a pathway for those workers who had cancer and for those people who were dependants of workers who had died as a result of cancer, the panel of experts ultimately reported that there would be a relatively easily defined pathway. Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
One of the key functions, if not the key function, of the appointment of the expert panel was to assist the process of those affected workers making workers compensation claims that would have otherwise been extraordinarily difficult given that the occupational exposure occurred between 1975 and 1985. It was fairly clear to us that any workers compensation claim made for occupational exposure that long ago was highly unlikely to be successful. One of the key reasons for the appointment of that panel was to try to find a pathway forward to enable those claims to be successful. Information supplied by an earlier report indicated that a form of compensation should be paid. That report left the matter hanging and did not indicate how it should proceed. However, it seemed to us that it was a reference to workers compensation payments. Despite the pessimism expressed in the first report that it would be difficult to find a pathway for those workers who had cancer and for those people who were dependants of workers who had died as a result of cancer, the panel of experts ultimately reported that there would be a relatively easily defined pathway. Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
Hon George Cash: When you say pathway, do you mean causal link? Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
Hon KIM CHANCE: Yes. Causal link is technically more accurate. I was thinking of it at a stage further on, and in terms of a pathway through the workers compensation process. With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
With respect to other workers, although a clear causal link has not been established, at least the issues raised in the committee of experts’ report will enable a more ready process for dealing with their workers compensation claims. When that report was delivered, I thought we would be dealing with, and making the first payments through, the workers compensation payment system within weeks, rather than months. My latest advice is that that has not been the case. I inquired why that had not been the case and I was informed that, in the main, the application forms lacked certain data and that it has taken some time to chase up that data. I am disappointed in that because one of the things we announced concurrent with the release of the report was that we would make WorkCover officers available to help to fill out the application forms. I had thought that, at least in the simpler cases, we could have dealt with matters quickly. The answer is none. What am I going to do about it? Firstly, I am disappointed. I became aware of this matter a couple of days ago. I have made inquiries about the delays. That is the answer I received. I am hopeful that the way will be cleared to make rapid payments.
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