On the Italian migrants to Australia who worked at the crocidolite mine at Wittenoom gorge, Western Australia

This article focuses on the extreme working conditions and intensity of exposure at the crocidolite mine and mill of Wittenoom Gorge, Western Australia, and on the Italians constituting 16% of the workforce. Part one provides the context and evaluates the mortality of Italians. The results confirm that migrants experienced high risks of asbestos-related diseases (asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma). Part two is based on field work contacting living workers who had returned to Italy. The results focused on the social organisation of this mine, the way migrants perceived the work experience at Wittenoom and the danger of crocidolite exposure, and how risks were communicated. In the absence of any serious management attempt to keep dust levels low and in the absence of adequate risk communication, workers protected themselves by quitting their job as soon as possible, within the constrains imposed by their employers. The failure to provide a safe work environment, which could have meant closing the operation altogether, seems to have been linked with the government policy of maintaining production at all costs, the lack of cooperation and communication between separate government bodies, and the low profile played by the model of health surveillance.