Download Commission proposes better workers` protection against cancer

European Commission - Press release
Commission proposes better workers' protection against cancer-causing
chemicals
Brussels, 13 May 2016
Cancer is the first cause of work-related deaths in the EU, accounting for 53% of the total
and therefore the single biggest health risk to workers in the European Union.
Carcinogens exposure at work
To improve protection for workers from cancer-causing chemicals, the Commission today proposes
changes to the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive (2004/37/EC) to limit exposure to 13 cancercausing chemicals at the workplace.
The Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility, Marianne Thyssen, said:
'Cancer has an enormous impact on workers, their families, industry and society. With this proposal we
will save 100,000 lives in the next 50 years. Protection of workers is at the core of the Commission's
commitment to a strong social Europe."
Concretely, the Commission proposes to address exposure to 13 cancer-causing chemicals by including
new or amended limit values in the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive. These limit values set a
maximum concentration for the presence of a chemical carcinogen in the workplace air. The proposal is
based on scientific evidence and follows broad discussions with scientists, employers, workers, Member
States' representatives and labour inspectors.
One specific example of a new chemical agent to be added is 'respirable crystalline silica' (RCS), which
the Commission proposes to include in the Directive as a 'process generated' substance, meaning dust
created by work processes such as mining, quarrying, or tunnelling or cutting, crushing or grinding of
silica-containing materials such as concrete, bricks, or rocks. While some companies have good control
of airborne concentrations of this chemical, supported by a dedicated social partner agreement, it is
nevertheless a leading cause of both the lung disease 'silicosis' and occupational lung cancer. The
Commission proposal will protect workers across the EU, including in the construction sector, which
represents almost 70% of all workers exposed to 'respirable crystalline silica'.
Introducing these limit values will lead to fewer cases of occupational cancer. In addition, EU limit
values promote consistency by defining a 'level playing field' for all users and a common objective for
employers, workers and enforcement authorities. The proposal therefore leads to a more efficient
system of workers' health protection and improved fairness in the single market.
Background
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), cancer is the second largest cause of death in most
developed countries – and in the European Union cancer is the first cause of work-related deaths. 53%
of annual of work-related deaths is due to cancer, compared to 28% for circulatory diseases and 6%
for respiratory diseases.
Exposure to some chemical agents at work can cause cancer. While cancer is a complex disease and
some causal factors are difficult to identify, it is clear that cancers caused by work can be prevented by
reducing or eliminating the exposures leading to the disease.
To ensure that workers are protected against such risks, in 2004 the EU has adopted the Carcinogens
and Mutagens Directive (CMD). It sets out steps to be taken to eliminate or limit exposure to
carcinogenic chemical agents, and as such to help prevent occupational cancers and related diseases
To set limit values for a number of carcinogens under the Directive, the Commission has initiated a
scientific and economic assessment of more than 20 priority chemical agents. In the EU around 20
million workers are exposed to at least one of these chemical agents.
This proposal is to introduce limit values for 13 of these identified priority chemical agents. For the
remaining chemical agents there is further preparatory work to be done and a proposal covering these
will follow by end 2016.
Some of these 13 carcinogens, like 'respirable crystalline silica' (RCS), chromium (VI) compounds,
hardwood dust or hydrazine, affect very high numbers of workers. For some others there are
indications that use patterns may be lower, but those chemicals are considered a priority as the ratio
between the number of exposed workers and cancer cases is high.
For more information
MEMO
News item on DG Employment website
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IP/16/1656
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