Right to a healthy workplace

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Right to a healthy workplace
Tatiana Santos
22/05/2015
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ISTAS

• ISTAS
• (Union Institute of Work, Environment and Health)
  is a non-profit, self-managed trade unions
  technical foundation wich main aim is to promote
  the improvement of working conditions,
  occupational health and safety and environmental
  protection.

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Chemical risk dimension

• 30 million of chemical substances in the world
• Chemicals global production
• 1930 1 million Tn
• 2007 400 million Tn
• 2006 world chemical sales 1641 billion
• http//www.cefic.org/

• European market
• 103.800 chemicals
• 30.000 chemicals usually used in the workplace

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Deaths caused by dangerous substances

• International Labour Organization (ILO)

• 2 million people die from occupational accidents
  or work-related diseases.

• 160 million cases of occupational disease

• 440.000 deaths caused by dangerous substances in
  the workplace

• 10 of cancer deaths are due to occupational
  expositions.

• 26,217 deaths caused by dangerous substances
  (EU-15)
• The latest information from year 2000

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Trade Unions strategy Action principles

• Act with an integrated view

• Precautionary principle

• Right of information and participation

• To eliminate is the most effective action

• More actions and less evaluations

• Guarantee pollution control

• Recognice the differences

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Trade Unions intervention in enterprises

• Know our rights

• Know what we are using

• Inform to your workmates

• Risk elimination or control

• Health and environment vigilance

• Guarantee participation

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TRADE UNION INTERVENTIONKnowing our righs

• Health
• Enviroment
• Participation
• Information
• Training

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TRADE UNION INTERVENTION Knowing what we use

• There is a general lack of knowledge about the
  properties and the uses of existing
• substances.

White Paper-Commission Strategy for a Future
Chemicals Policy. COM (2001) 88 final, 27
February 2001.
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TRADE UNION INTERVENTION Knowing what we use

• 100.000 substances in the EU
• 75.000 a few (or non) toxicity data
• 25.000 limited toxicity data
• 2500 HPVC (gt1000 tn/year)

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TRADE UNION INTERVENTION Knowing what we use

• Very high concern substances
• 1500 carcinogens and mutagens
• 1500 toxics for reproduction
• 3000 sensitazers
• 1300 neurotoxics
• 1500 endocrine disrupters
• 400 PBT and/or POP

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TRADE UNION INTERVENTION Eliminating the risk

• To avoid the risk is an employer obligation
• Council Directive 89/391/EEC on the introduction
  of measures to encourage improvements in the
  safety and health of workers at work.
• Council Directive 98/24/EC on the protection of
  the health and safety of workers from the risks
  related to chemical agents at work.
• Council Directive 90/394/EEC on the protection of
  workers from the risks related to exposure to
  carcinogens at work (Sixth individual Directive
  within the meaning of Article 16 (1) of Directive
  89/391/EEC)

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TRADE UNION INTERVENTION Recognizing the
differences

• Biologic differences

• Specific patologies

• Maternity

• Gender uniquality in public health

• Habits

• Double exposition work home

• Social, cultural and psicological differences

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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Risctox

• The data base allows to do consultations
  introducing the substance name
• or anyone of its identification numbers (CAS,
  CE/EINECS) in a general
• finder, or consulting the listings of risks or
  norm that is included.

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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Risctox

• Substance identification and classification

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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Risctox

• Specific risks

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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Alternatives
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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Assess and compare what
you use

• Insert your product

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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Assess and compare what
you use

• Evaluate your product

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ISTAS WORK Online Tools Assess and compare what
you use

• Choose between two products to compare

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ISTAS WORK Promoting substitution

• Substitution of trichloroethylene
• Trichloroethylene is commonly use in asphalt
  quality control laboratories as a solvent.
• It is an irritant, carcinogen, mutagen, endocrine
  disruptor and neurotoxic substance.
• PBT, POP, air and water pollutant, climate change
  precursor, ozone depleyer, creator of troposferic
  ozone and hazardous for aquatic organisms.

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ISTAS WORK Promoting substitution

• Substitution of trichloroethylene
• ISTAS proposed the use of an incineration oven to
  avoid the use of trichloroethylene.
• The success of this alternative made possible the
  substitution of trichloethylene in several
  spanish laboratories.

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ISTAS WORK Promoting substitution

• Improvements with the substitution of
  trichloroethylene
• Avoid the solvents use
• Avoid the workers exposition
• Reduction of the essays time
• Elimination of residues management costs
• Avoid the need of protection masks and gloves
• Improvement in the workers security and health
• Normative compliment
• Reduction of risks costs
• Growthin the enterprise image and labour
  relationship

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• REACH, for the Registration, Evaluation and
  Authorisation of CHemicals.

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• Thank you!!!!

Tatiana Santos ISTAS-CCOO