Asbestos in the workplace
EC has launched the second phase of consultation with social partners.
SW – 07/2021
In parallel with the EU's new strategic
framework for occupational health and safety, the EC launched the second phase
of consultations with the social partners on the risks of exposure to chemical
agents and asbestos at work 28 June 2021.
In the first phase of the consultations, held from December 2020
to February 2021, the social partners were consulted about the possible
direction of EU action with regard to revising the Chemical Agents at Work Directive and the Asbestos Directive, with a view to setting or reviewing
binding occupational exposure limit values or biological limit values for
asbestos, lead and diisocyanates. The latter can cause asthma and skin diseases
and it is used in car paints and construction foams, etc.
Based of the responses, the EC has
concluded that further EU action is required. With the second phase of the consultations, the EC now wants to
gather the opinions of the social partners on the content of the planned EU
measures to revise the directives.
Although it can no longer be manufactured
or used in the EU, diseases caused by asbestos are unfortunately still a
topical issue, partly because of the very long latency period, which can be up
to 40 years. The wave of renovations, which are intended to contribute to the
climate neutrality of buildings as part of the European Green Deal, also raises
the problem of contaminated sites, where asbestos, which was frequently used
many years ago, has to be removed. According to the EC, asbestos exposure
claims about 88,000 lives a year in Europe, and this accounts for 55 - 85 per
cent of lung cancer cases that developed in the workplace.
Next steps
The second phase of the consultation will
run until 30 September 2021. During the consultation phase, the social partners
might decide to terminate the procedure and negotiate an agreement between
themselves. If the social partners do not want to enter into negotiations, then
the EC will present an initiative for occupational health and safety in 2022,
as announced in the new EU strategic framework.
Also on 30 September 2021, MEPs in the
European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs committee will decide on
their own-initiative report on "Protecting workers from asbestos",
which will call on the EC to present a European strategy for eliminating
asbestos (see Report 4-2021).