If I had a dollar for every solar installer I’d seen around here climbing over 30-degree roof pitches without any fall protection at all, I’d have made a serious dent in my mortgage.
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Update to this: the landscaper has begun work.
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48 hours after I yelled at those solar guys, Safe Work Australia has dropped a new guidance document specifically on installing solar panels.
https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/doc/guide-managing-risks-rooftop-solar-installation-work
This is not the first time I have seemingly managed to inadvertently manifest something into existence.
Erin wants to know why I can't use my power to do something useful like get us a lotto win.
(far too many Lotto winners end up being incredibly financially ruined as a result of their win and just being terrible at not letting having immediate access to vast sums of money go straight to their heads, that's why)
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@MattHatton lmao, this will have the same impact as all other SWA guidance notes. Also, I hope they were installing panels over the top of the existing roof anchors, which is the industry standard.
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@Kels_316 Oh this will accomplish absolutely nothing at all and change precisely no minds on the subject.
As for the anchors, it was on a house so there aren't any to install over. And I can't imagine they'd go to the effort of installing some just to put the panels over the top of.
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@MattHatton haha, I just scanned through that doc - the key part is all you need is a white card to be considered 'competent' so yep, pointless.
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@Kels_316 The thing that I don't quite understand is why as the builder or owner of the site, would you want to run the risk of everything being shut down while Safework investigates completely avoidable death?
Like, that's time and money my guys.
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@MattHatton because you don't know and don't know you don't know - that's my guess.
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@Kels_316 Nah. My working theory is that it's all calculated.
Sure, yes, falls from height is one of the biggest workplace killers.
BUT, in raw numbers you're looking at 30-odd a year.
Put that up against how many people are up on roofs even just banging in solar panels on a daily basis. The probability of an accident occurring on any one site is incredibility small. So they roll the dice.
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@MattHatton oh sorry I thought you meant the person who is having the home built. yeah, bosses absolutely roll the dice, on everything, every day. We have sites where the same shit has been tagged out for 5+ years, no intention to fix it.
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@MattHatton not just anchors either, ladders, guardrails that aren't installed properly, dodgy walkway just lying on roofs, cunts dont care because they wont pay to get it fixed
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@Kels_316 @MattHatton I watched two dudes doing some roof work in Newtown the other day get on to a third storey unit roof wearing EWP harnesses. No other equipment though, no rope, no anchor, not actually connected to anything.
Risk: mitigated
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@liamvhogan @MattHatton I would by lying if I said I have not been that guy. Or the guy just trailing a rope along behind him while he walks around....