Asbestos awareness snapshot
Tradespeople

Not all tradespeople are confident in their ability to identify asbestos or situations where is
could pose a danger

Some still appear willing to take risks in relation to managing asbestos on a work site

Close to a third of tradespeople want further additional training on asbestos and its dangers
A recent commissioned survey of 401 Australian tradespeople shows that while the majority of those
working in building and/or construction related trades have a strong awareness of the prevalence of
asbestos in Australian buildings and its associated dangers, there is also significant demand for both
further training and practical advice on how to identify situations where asbestos needs to be
considered.
Self-assessed knowledge of asbestos & its dangers is good but not yet universal
Across all tradespeople surveyed, 94% said it was important for them to know about asbestos and its
related dangers (82% very important, 12% important). When subsequently asked to assess their own
knowledge of asbestos and its related dangers, 1 in 5 tradespeople (20%) rated their own knowledge as
only moderate or below. While this group are generally far more knowledgeable on asbestos matters
than the broader population, this suggests there are still many tradespeople who feel they could further
increase their knowledge on this issue.
On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is not at all important and 5 is very important, how important is it for you to know about asbestos
and its related dangers? SR, 1-5 SCALE
Base: All respondents
Not all tradespeople know which material contain asbestos, or to identify situations
where it could pose a danger
More than 1 in 10 tradespeople surveyed (12%) said they were not confident in their ability to identify
materials that contain asbestos, while a further 23% said they were only moderately confident to do
this. Similarly, 8% of tradespeople surveyed said they were not confident in identifying situations where
they or others could be at risk of exposure to asbestos. These findings clearly show that just because
tradespeople have more familiarity with asbestos and its risks, such knowledge is not universal across all
tradespeople and the challenge of building further knowledge and awareness on this issue is far from
complete.
Some tradespeople appear willing to take greater risks of asbestos exposure than others
Of some concern, the survey showed that 17% of tradespeople surveyed disagreed they would engage a
specialist if they were unsure something contained asbestos, while 10% disagreed that even a small
amount of exposure to asbestos can be dangerous. These findings suggest a need to remind all
tradespeople that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos, and that asbestos identification and
removal should only be undertaken by those with the appropriate knowledge, skills and protective
equipment to do so.
Many tradespeople would like additional training on asbestos and its related dangers
Some 29% of tradespeople surveyed said they would like additional formal training in relation to
asbestos and how it needs to be managed in any building, renovation or demolition work, while 18%
said they had specific additional information needs in relation to asbestos and its related dangers. Of
these, it was clear that tradespeople are looking for practical guidance to make more informed decisions
on site, including:

how to identify asbestos / materials containing asbestos

how to handle asbestos

safe removal of asbestos
About ASEA
The Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency was established on 1 July 2013 to provide a national focus
on asbestos issues, which go beyond workplace safety to encompass environmental and public health.
The independent agency will ensure asbestos issues receive the attention and focus needed to drive
change across all levels of government.
About the survey
Findings reported in this document are from a phone survey of 401 people working in building or
construction related trades, conducted by Colmar Brunton between 22 May and 30 May 2014.
ASEA will consider these findings and develop targeted strategies to increase awareness of the dangers
of asbestos.