Tamworth's crossing supervisors have long endured burning summers, frozen winters and heat stroke, without shade or cover.
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But union organiser Stephen Mears hopes those days will soon come to an end.
The Public Sector Association met this week with state government representatives in Tamworth to find a solution for what he said was a real risk.
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"It's a really difficult job obviously with the difficult conditions people are facing," Mr Mears said.
"[In 2019] I looked at Moree where some of the crossing supervisors worked and I think they had an average daily temperature of 37 through summer. That meant significantly higher on a lot of days. Reflected heat [from the road] also adds 15 to 25 degrees more to the ambient temperature."
The union representative said many crossing supervisors are retirement age, or otherwise vulnerable. Even just two hours in the sun in the morning and afternoon can be a health risk. Many crossings face west and heat stroke "wouldn't be unusual", he said.
"No-one wants to stop work for any reason because the services they provide to people are essential," he said.
"We'd be howled down if we walked off the site because of inclement weather and a child got injured. That's the last thing from our mind and we want to make sure everyone is safe including employees.
"You've also got things like hailstorms and lightning storms and there's a lot of other inclement weather as well."
Mr Mears was full of praise for the Transport for NSW team, saying they committed to investigate options for shade and other improvements for supervisors.
"We put a number of issues on the table, whether it be portable shade, an umbrella that can be attached to the stanchion, they're looking at updating the shirts they wear," he said.
He's confident the safety review will lead to substantial improvement in conditions for the workforce.
Transport for NSW was contacted for this story.
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