Dangerous Chemicals Putting Workers' Lives At Risk

Employers who risk the future health of their employees by exposing them to cancer-causing chemicals at work should be prosecuted under UK safety laws, says the TUC today (Thursday) as it produces a new guide for unions.

Launching a campaign to raise awareness of the toxic chemicals and substances such as wood dust and diesel particles that can make workers ill sometimes years after leaving their jobs, the TUC guide aims to help union safety reps keep up the pressure on employers to make workplaces safer, and stop them from taking unnecessary risks with their employees' lives.

Around 250,000 people are diagnosed with cancer every year, and although it is impossible to say how many of these cases are as a result of contact with substances that people have come into contact with at work, the TUC estimates that work is the reason behind up to as many as 18,000 cancer deaths.

Although some of the most toxic chemicals used in the UK are subject to legal worker exposure limits, the TUC says this doesn't mean that work below these limits is safe. Any workers who come into contact with cancer-causing chemicals - no matter how small the dose - are risking their health in later years, says the TUC guide.

Sometimes safer chemicals exist, but cost often lies behind the reasons why employers stick with the more carcinogenic ones, says the TUC. Wherever possible, employers should try to eliminate the toxic chemicals from the workplace, and if this really isn't possible, then they should look at changing ways of working and give staff effective protective clothing.

Any harm caused to workers as a result from exposure can take decades to develop, says the TUC guide so there is far less pressure on employers to act than there would be if a fatal accident had recently occurred in their workplace.

TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: 'Workplace cancers kill around 15,000 - 18,000 people every year compared with the 229 workplace fatalities caused by injury last year. Every one of these workplace cancer deaths is avoidable and far more must be done to both increase awareness of the risks and also to remove employees' exposure to carcinogens.

'Many people simply do not know the risks from substances such as wood dust, silica and diesel particles and even if they do develop cancer later in life often do not associate it with work exposure. As a result there is far less pressure on employers to take action to remove the risks. That must change. The TUC wants to ensure that no worker comes into contact with a cancer-causing chemical and any employer who does expose their workforce to the risk of cancer should be prosecuted.'

The TUC guide to cancer in the workplace can be found here

Source: TUC Risks

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