Manufactured stone, used extensively in modern interior design such as kitchen and bathroom benchtops, can be up to 90 per cent silica.

Unlike mesothelioma caused by asbestos or black lung caused by coal dust, silicosis has a rapid onset, meaning many of the present sufferers are men in their 20s and 30s.

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"These men are in the prime of their lives, they are the main breadwinners for their families, and now their earning capacity has been diminished and their lives cut short," Mr Singh said.

"It is horrific."

Mr Singh said 350 people across Australia had been diagnosed with the disease, at the latest estimate.

Last July, the Australian government set up a taskforce "to develop a national approach for the prevention, early identification, control and management of dust diseases in Australia".

Health Minister Greg Hunt was handed a list of "interim" recommendations in December, about how to protect workers from silica dust exposure.

He is yet to make those recommendations public.

"Publication of the advice is a matter for government," a Health spokesman said.

Mr Singh said time for talk, consultation and debate had to be over, and action taken.

"No stonemason workshop should be permitted to handle and cut engineered stone, which contains 90 to 95 per cent silica content, unless they are licensed to do so," he said.

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"You should not be able to get a licence unless you adhere to stringent workplace health and safety measures.

"It is like liquor or gun licensing - not anyone is able to sell liquor or guns and there is a reason for that, because it can result in death and destruction."

Mr Singh said despite risk of toxic dust, workers were still cutting the product dry.

"Their faces are hovering over the slab as they cut, it gives off an enormous dust cloud, they inhale and ingest that," he said.

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"In many instances these workers are provided with nothing more than a flimsy mask you can buy at Bunnings. It is not sealed tight around their mouth and nasal passages, so dust gets in regardless.

"These guys are still working in unsafe conditions.

"To me it is a no-brainer. Action can be taken now, not tomorrow, not in six months' time - now."