European Trade Unions mobilize for occupational cancer prevention on 28 April

(Brussels, 24 April 2015) International Workers' Memorial Day is held on 28 April. This year we commemorate the thousands of workers that have died from accidents and occupational diseases at work. Toxic exposure at the workplace is the spotlight this year. EPSU is particularly concerned that the European Commission has failed to promote occupational cancer prevention measures. The carcinogens agents Directive, the main instrument for protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at the workplace, has been under revision for ten years. The European Commission’s agenda on so-called “better regulation” which sees health and safety legislation as “red tap” is particularly harmful to this process.

Most of the deaths related to the exposure to toxins and carcinogens could be stopped but preventive measures have been blocked in the past. There is enough evidence about the causes of occupational cancers but instead of introducing preventive measure, the European Commission denies its responsibility in that area. The ETUC estimates that 150.000 lives have been lost in the European Union since the announcement by the European Commission in October 2013 of its decision to suspend all on-going legislation initiatives in the occupational health and safety field. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) puts the resulting occupational cancer toll at in excess of 660,000 lives a year; many believe it is considerably higher. It is an epidemic guaranteed to continue for at least one more generation, as today’s exposures only reveal their cancerous legacy decades down the line.

The ETUC has called for the adoption by the Commission of compulsory limit values for exposure to 50 dangerous chemical substances. To date the directive only places occupational exposure limits on three carcinogens: benzene, vinyl ether monomers and hardwood. Also efforts in the United States to tighten exposure limits for the most deadly substances are stalled in consultative processes due to the pressure from industry and multinationals. Whenever stricter controls are proposed industry representatives challenge the science and raise costs of prevention. This also sheds a particular light on trade negotiations like CETA and TTIP which could lock Canada, the US and the European Union at present levels and make improvements and new rules much harder due to processes of regulatory cooperation and mutual recognition, as well as investor state dispute settlement procedures under which corporations could claim huge compensation (including for long-term lost profits) when governments change exposure limits for example.

ITUC, ETUC and EPSU affiliates have been developing a number of campaigns to raise the issue and have been successful in the past for example regarding asbestos. EPSU’s Fire-fighters Network has raised the issue and national EPSU affiliates have developed campaign material to develop good practice preventive measure to combat occupational cancer as a fire-fighter.

A new ITUC guide, ‘Toxic work – stop deadly exposures today’ sets out why we want to remove toxic exposures from the workplace and how.
Also a new ITUC-supported workplace cancer website, www.cancerhazards.org, now provides union representatives with the latest news on occupational cancer, including emerging scientific evidence and union initiatives to combat this workplace scourge. Unions worldwide are running their own campaigns and producing their own additions to the prevention toolbox.
28 April is the start, not the end of the process. Raise this issue with your workplace representatives, union officials and engage with your community on this issue- let’s all rise for occupational health and safety on 28 April.

- More info on 28 April at http://28april.org/

- see also here