Avoid risk of skin cancer, outdoor workers are told

Unions have issued their annual warning about skin cancer caused by working outside, in the wake of new statistics showing an increase in the number of cases.

USDAW shopworkers’ union and the GMB general union are backing the SunSmart campaign, run by Cancer Research UK, which gives advice on skin cancer risks, early detection and precautions.

Among those workers at greatest risk are construction workers, staff in garden centres, park keepers, street sweepers, refuse collectors, traffic wardens and caretakers.

There are now over 70,000 new cases of skin cancer in the UK every year — more than double the number in the 1980s. The most serious type, malignant melanoma, kills 1,700 people a year – with men more likely to die from skin cancer than women, partly because they are less likely to take the warning signs seriously.

The GMB estimates that 90% of deaths could be prevented if simple precautions are followed, and the SunSmart code advises workers to spend time in the shade in the middle of the day, stay covered up and use sunscreen of at least factor 15.

Employers can help by rotating jobs and planning tasks so that outdoor work is reduced between 11am and 3pm. They should also provide shade, high sun-factor sunscreen, headgear and loose clothing.

More advice is available at www.cancerresearchuk.org/sunsmart/forprofessionals/workplace/?version=1