Cancer in tyre and rubber industry


Tory government attacks on health and safety are hampering efforts to tackle cancer hazards in the tyre and rubber industry, says the Unite general union. 


New research published in the Occupational and Environmental Medicine journal earlier this year showed workers in the industry are still at significant risk of developing several types of cancer as a result of exposure to N-nitrosamines, found in most rubber products, and rubber dust. 


Unite national officer Tony Devlin said the government’s scrapping of the tripartite HSE body, the Tyre and Rubber Industries Safety Action Group (TRISAG), means the dangers are being neglected and workers are being denied “an effective voice”.


“The lack of an effective forum to deal with exposure to cancer-causing substances is another example of how the government has washed it hands of workplace health and safety,” he said.


The union is calling for stricter controls on N-nitrosamines, rubber dusts and fumes and the re-establishment of TRISAG. 


https://oem.bmj.com/content/oemed/early/2019/02/15/oemed-2018-105181.full.pdf

https://unitetheunion.org/news-events/news/2019/april/tyre-and-rubber-industry-hamstrung-on-new-research-into-health-threats-due-to-government-cuts-warns-unite