Sleeping disorders among mining workers on the rise
With the Western Australian mining industry continuing to boom, the number of shift workers suffering sleep disorders is growing.
Mining companies are operating 24 hours a day and the experts say many workers do not get enough sleep between shifts.
Dr David Hillman, from the Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital in Perth, says he is treating a large number of shift workers and there are safety concerns which must be addressed by mining companies.
“First of all there’s a decrease in alertness levels, secondly our reaction times get slower,” Dr Hillman said.
“Mood and memory are adversely affected, it just makes us under perform so we become safety risks amongst other things.
“It really is a massive issue for the Pilbara.
“We do see quite a few people from the north-west.”
