Sydney tunnel death needs investigation

The Australian Workers' Union (AWU) has announced that all 
work on the Sydney Cross City Tunnel will be suspended 
indefinitely following the tragic death of a worker.

The worker, a member of the AWU, was killed at 5.30pm last 
Thursday after he was crushed by falling rocks inside the tunnel 
under East Sydney.

AWU NSW State Secretary Russ Collison said he has had officials 
on the site talking to all AWU members, as well as talking to the 
company, the other construction unions and WorkCover about the 
situation.

"Naturally at this stage we are extremely saddened by the tragic 
death of our member yesterday, our primary concern at the moment 
is for the workers' family and his workmates", Mr. Collison said.

At a mass meeting on Monday 200 AWU members pledged to donate two 
days' pay to financially assist the worker's widow and two 
teenage children. The meeting also called on construction firm 
Baulderstone Hornibrook come forward quickly with the more than 
$50,000 in entitlements owed.

Mr Collison said the AWU would now be turning its attention to 
investigating how this death occurred and said members will not 
return to the site until a full assessment has been made and all 
safety orders have been completed.

The union had met with Baulderstone Hornibrook just two days 
prior to the accident to discuss a number of safety concerns, 
including high levels of dust and diesel fumes and a lack of 
safety handrails.

National Secretary Bill Shorten said the union nationally will be 
dedicating resources to ensure that safety remains the number one 
priority for all tunnelling works across the country, but 
particularly in Sydney.

"Currently there is a tunnelling boom in Sydney and naturally we 
are concerned that this incident on the Cross City Tunnel could 
be repeated elsewhere. Baulderstone Hornibrook is a multi-
national construction firm and we expect for them to have the 
best safety standards in the country", Mr. Shorten said.