Unions call for action to cut asbestos deaths

Unions call for action to cut asbestos deaths

Unions are calling on the government to introduce a requirement on local authorities to give parents and school workers an annual report on the asbestos risk in schools. The Joint Union Asbestos Campaign (JUAC) says although every year asbestos-related mesothelioma claims the lives of 16 UK teachers, and more than 70 per cent of school buildings contain asbestos, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has recently cut school inspections. They say schools will no longer be 'proactively' inspected, even though HSE knows a significant proportion of local authorities have serious flaws in the asbestos management systems, which they have a statutory duty to maintain. UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis said: 'Despite the warnings, and the heavy death toll, less is going to be done to protect school workers and children from the threat of asbestos. We are calling on the government to boost safety by introducing legislation to make sure local authorities assess the risk of asbestos, and let staff and parents know about them. School staff and parents have a right to know that their school is a safe place to work in and learn in.' JUAC chair Julie Winn said over the last three decades the asbestos cancer mesothelioma had killed well over 200 teachers. 'More than 60 per cent of those deaths have occurred in the last decade,' she said. 'It's an alarming upward trend, and for every affected teacher, there's a classroom full of children, and school support staff, who have been exposed to the same danger. If we are ever to solve this deathly problem, a policy of complete openness is essential, and must be introduced as a matter of urgency.'

UNISON news release.