Respirable crystalline silica (RCS) remains one of the most significant and actively regulated health risks across construction, mining, quarrying and tunnelling. Directors and officers are increasingly expected to demonstrate not only awareness of the risk, but active governance and control.
Failure to do so carries serious health, legal and financial consequences.
Case study – Laing O’Rourke Australia
08 December 2025
Laing O’Rourke Australia Construction Pty Ltd entered into an enforceable undertaking in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court while facing multiple charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, which, if breached or withdrawn, may see WorkSafe reinstate said charges.
The charges relate to alleged failures to provide a safe workplace, protect non-employees from health and safety risks, notify WorkSafe of a reportable incident, and keep required written records.
The matter arose from works undertaken in January 2023, when Laing O’Rourke was principal contractor on rail plate replacement works between Flagstaff and Southern Cross stations. Dust generated during the works was later identified as high-risk crystalline silica, with air monitoring detecting silica levels exceeding the Safe Work Australia exposure standard. WorkSafe alleged that Laing O’Rourke’s risk assessment did not adequately consider silica content or exposure duration and that the work was not conducted in accordance with a silica hazard control statement.
Separate allegations relate to a failure to notify WorkSafe after a worker suffered burns while operating equipment on site.
Under the estimated $929,500 enforceable undertaking, Laing O’Rourke must support the rollout of a silica control tool in Victoria, develop industry training for managing respirable crystalline silica in civil and rail construction, host a supply-chain forum on silica risks, create new industry education resources (including multilingual materials), donate $50,000 to the Lung Foundation Australia, and promote the new training and resources across the industry.
What is silica dust?
Silica dust, more accurately known as respirable crystalline silica (RCS), is generated through mechanical processes including, but not limited to crushing, cutting, drilling, grinding and tunnelling of materials that contain crystalline silica. This includes natural stone and many engineered or manufactured products.
Due to the microscopic size of the particles, RCS can be inhaled deep into the lungs, where it may cause permanent and irreversible damage.
Health impacts of RCS exposure
Exposure to respirable crystalline silica is associated with a range of serious illnesses, including:
- Silicosis (acute, accelerated and chronic), caused by direct exposure over varying periods, leading to fibrotic nodules, shortness of breath and progressive massive fibrosis
- Chronic bronchitis and emphysema
- Lung cancer
- Kidney disease
- Autoimmune conditions such as scleroderma.
Many of these conditions are latent, progressive, and irreversible – significantly elevating both long-term liability and regulatory scrutiny.
Director responsibilities under WHS law
Under Australian Work Health and Safety legislation, companies and their directors have a primary duty of care to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers and other persons who may be affected by their work.
This duty extends to organisations involved in, or associated with, activities that generate or disturb silica-containing materials.
Importantly, directors and officers have due diligence obligations, which require them to actively verify that the organisation has appropriate systems, controls and resources in place to manage silica exposure risks. These duties are clearly articulated by Safe Work Australia and are increasingly enforced by regulators across all jurisdictions.
Proactive risk management
Effective silica risk management follows a hierarchy of controls that must be demonstrable—not theoretical.
1. Elimination and substitution (most effective)
- Select materials with less than 1% crystalline silica where possible.
- Use pre-cut or prefabricated products to reduce on-site cutting and grinding.
- Substitute high-silica materials with lower-risk alternatives where feasible.
2. Engineering controls (prevent dust at source)
- Wet methods: Water suppression during cutting, drilling and grinding.
- Ventilation: On-tool dust extraction and local exhaust ventilation (LEV).
- Isolation: Enclosed cabins with filtered air or segregated dust-producing work zones.
3. Administrative controls (change how work is performed)
- Develop and maintain task-specific Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS).
- For high-risk works, a crystalline silica hazard control statement must be produced and followed.
- Limit exposure time through task planning and worker rotation.
- Use wet sweeping, for example mopping or M-/H-class vacuum systems and avoid dry sweeping where possible.
- Implement clear signage, training, supervision and visitor controls.
4. Personal Protective Equipment (Last Line of Defence)
- Provide properly selected and fitted respiratory protective equipment (RPE)
- Ensure RPE forms part of a structured program including fit-testing, training, maintenance and compliance monitoring.
Obtain independent practical WHS governance support
Consider the instruction of an independent expert with experience supporting clients across the construction, mining and infrastructure industries.
Bellrock Advisory can provide practical risk management advice with services including WHS gap analysis, silica risk audits, governance and due diligence reviews. This ensures WHS frameworks are aligned with regulatory requirements and insurer expectations.
Independent risk reviews are designed to ensure an organisation’s procedures are current and defensible showing that your business is not merely compliant on paper.
Reactive insurance: A secondary line of defence
Insurance should never be viewed as a substitute for effective risk management. However, where an organisation or its directors find themselves under regulatory investigation, certain policies may respond to associated costs, subject to policy terms, conditions and exclusions.
Statutory liability insurance
Statutory Liability policies may respond to regulatory investigations involving the organisation, directors, officers and managers. Best-in-class policies can be triggered by a Notifiable Safety Incident, potentially advancing funds to:
- Respond to regulator investigations or information requests
- Engage legal advisers and subject-matter experts
- Conduct internal investigations
- Manage crisis and reputation impacts.
While fines and penalties are generally uninsurable, defence and investigation costs are typically insurable. Claims data consistently shows that uninsured fines often represent less than 10 per cent of total investigation costs. In some circumstances, negotiating an Enforceable Undertaking in lieu of a fine may also broaden policy response.
Directors’ & Officers’ liability insurance
D&O insurance protects directors, officers and senior managers personally. Depending on the breadth of the bodily injury exclusion, a D&O policy may respond to:
- Regulatory investigations
- Allegations of failure to provide a safe workplace
- Claims asserting inadequate risk controls or governance failures
- Shareholder claims (for listed entities) arising from WHS-related disclosures or outcomes.
Policy structure and wording are critical in determining whether coverage responds.
Final thought
Silica exposure is no longer a peripheral WHS issue, it is a board-level risk. Regulators, insurers and courts increasingly expect directors to demonstrate active oversight, informed decision-making and continuous verification of controls.
The question is no longer “Are we compliant?” it is “Can we prove that we exercised due diligence?”
For more information, contact your Bellrock Advisor who will be happy to assist you.
