CAMPAIGN Health and safety – Silicosis
‘WHEN DEATH IS A ‘‘
The fight against deadly silicosis goes on as Unite launches campaign
Unite convenor Trevor Simpson knows all too well what it looks like to live with – and die from – silicosis. His father-in-law succumbed to the disease just two years ago.
“It was absolutely horrendous watching him deteriorate,” Trevor said. “In the last two years of his life, he literally wanted to die. That is the reality of silicosis – the suffering is so bad, death is a relief for its victims.”
The unfathomable pain and suffering of silicosis victims and their families is even more devastating knowing that it is entirely preventable. Unite has now doubled down on its fight to end silicosis with a new campaign, as previewed in our last edition of buildingWORKER.
Now, Unite has taken this fight all the way to Parliament.
Launching its campaign in conjunction with Thompsons Solicitors, the union and solicitors firm convened a joint meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) in November.
The meeting brought together medical experts, union reps, solicitors and politicians who stood united in their resolve to ban the use of engineered stone – a major contributor to acute silicosis in workers as young as 23 – and to strengthen enforcement mechanisms to fight the debilitating workplace disease.
Chairing the meeting was Daniel Poet, an industrial disease expert and partner at Thompsons Solicitors.
“In many of our cases, clients have been exposed to silica dust for only a few years, yet the damage is already severe. We’re also deeply concerned about the long-term impact on their ability to work and support their families as their conditions worsen.
[Engineered stone products are] just given to these workers, and they’re cutting them with no protection. You’ve got people in their 30s in hospital with silicosis and COPD. When their lungs are done, their futures are finished – that’s it
Trevor Simpson, Unite convenor, London
“Silicosis is entirely preventable - there is no excuse for inaction.”
The meeting also heard from Tina Conroy, a chartered occupational hygienist, who gave sobering statistics on the devastating impact of silicosis – a workplace disease whose victims continue to skyrocket.
She explained that the approximately 1,000 reported deaths in the UK from silicosis each year disguises the untold, and growing, number of people who suffer from life-limiting disease caused by silica exposure.
“Because of the way the industry works, because of natural developments – we are using power tools, using automation to a greater degree – those [silicosis] numbers are going up, and people are getting younger,” she noted.
Working on engineered stone
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