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Emerging Worker Safety Risks
MSDs / Dangerous Substances
What hazards will plague the workplace of the 21st century?
The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work has been looking into the occupational safety challenges of the future. Its Risk Observatory anticipates new and emerging risks. In its January 2006 report, the Agency identifies research priorities for occupational safety and health in member states of the European Union (EU). The issues described in that report are highly relevant to Canada.
Psychosocial Factors
The Agency’s report points to work-related stress and physical and psychological violence as major concerns. These pressures can add to the chance of a mistake that could lead to a mishap or injury.
Workers are finding it hard to achieve a balance between working and non-working time. Realities such as caring for dependent older relatives, temporary work, or jobs with 'unsocial hours' can contribute to work-related stress. Some also face harassment, bullying, mobbing and even physical violence.
The Agency recommends further study of the changing world of work and its impact on health and safety, as well as development of organizational interventions to improve the psychosocial work environment. As well, the European Commission has called for research proposals to investigate work-related stress including physical and psychological violence such as harassment, bullying, and mobbing.
An earlier (2002) report noted that “emerging” illnesses such as stress, depression, anxiety, violence at work, harassment and intimidation are responsible for 18 percent of all problems associated with health at work, with a quarter of them resulting in two weeks or more of absence from work. These complaints were linked to work organization, working time arrangements, hierarchical relations, transport-related fatigue, and ethnic and cultural diversity in the workplace.
In Canada, as in Europe, the nature and organization of work are changing, as is the workforce. In this country, mental health claims are the fastest growing category of disability costs. Three-quarters of employers say mental health issues are the leading cause of short and long term disability claims in their organization. Workplace Bullying is consistently one of the most-visited pages on the Canada Safety Council’s website; the Council regularly responds to victims who do not know where to turn.
MSDs
In 2005, the European Agency’s risk observatory produced a forecast on emerging physical risks related to occupational safety and health. Lack of physical activity in largely automated jobs was at the top of its list. This was tied to an increase in musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs).
Work-related MSDs cause chronic pain in the muscles, tendons, and nerves. Examples are carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, neck tension. Activities that are repetitive, fast-paced, concentrated on one part of the body, and/or require awkward postures can lead to these disorders. The effects are more serious when the physical risk is aggravated by psychosocial stresses, inadequate equipment or poor ergonomics.
During the 1990s, more and more European workers reported exposure to heavy loads, work-related backache, exposure to painful or tiring positions, and work-related muscular pains in the neck and shoulders.
The EU has identified a number of research priorities in this category, including: development of assessment tools, interventions and preventive measures; as well as rehabilitation and the application of ergonomics in workplace design.
Musculoskeletal injuries, disorders and diseases account for about half of all lost time claims covered by Workers’ Compensation in Canada.
Dangerous Substances
According to a 2000 survey, 22 percent of European workers breathe in vapours, fumes, dust or dangerous substances at work. An additional 16 percent deal with dangerous products or substances.
European research priorities include more investigation into how chemicals affect human health and the environment, and what can be done to manage the risks. For example, skin diseases are a common reason for lost work time in many European countries. This suggests a need for skin exposure limits, as well as methods to assess exposure to mixtures of substances. Carcinogens, chemicals that affect reproduction, and biological agents such as viruses, bacteria and parasites are also of concern.
Work where low-dose substance exposure occurs along with other safety risks such as noise, vibration or phychosocial factors is of particular concern. Both the Europeans and the Americans have placed a priority on examining the complex interactions of mixed exposures. In 2005, the US-based National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health issued a Mixed Exposures Research Agenda. That document says such stressors as medications, food, cleaning products, exhaust emissions, solvents, ultraviolet radiation, noise, whole-body vibration, and social or psychological stress can combine to produce complicated health problems. For the office environment, indoor air quality is a major research priority.
Nanotechnology is a new and fast-growing field. Millions of workers around the world (two million in the US alone) are exposed to nanoparticles. These tiny particles can move around the body in unprecedented ways, and may cause respiratory, cardiac and immune problems. Yet exposure assessment and measurement methods are still in their infancy, and research is urgently needed on the biological effects of nanoparticles.
Canada’s experience with asbestos should serve as a warning to address hazards before they cause long-term damage. In the 10-year period 1994 to 2003, almost two-thirds of the fatal occupational disease claims accepted by the Workers’ Compensation Board of British Columbia were due to asbestos; in most cases, the exposure took place more than 20 years ago, when the dangers of asbestos were not well understood.
Today, construction workers demolishing buildings with asbestos insulation must take precautions. However, Canadian firefighters face smoke that is alarmingly toxic. Fires release harmful chemicals from ubiquitous electronic equipment, as well as industrial materials, even household products. Concerns about high rates of cancer among firefighters have only started to receive serious attention.
In September 2006, Environment Canada and Health
Canada plan to release a list of about 4,000 chemicals they believe need safety assessments. Many were developed in the 1950s and 1960s before current environmental laws were in place. Some are industrial compounds. Others are used in everyday consumer products such as hair dryers, water bottles, fast-food wrappers, computers and tin cans. Over the past 20 years, research has linked long-term exposure to the chemicals to a wide variety of health problems.
These new and emerging risks indicate safety is a moving target. The 21st century worker faces risks that were unknown 25 years ago. What disabilities and diseases will result? The prospects are not known. One thing is clear to the Canada Safety Council — a proactive, prevention-oriented approach is necessary.
Further References
Adapting to change in work and society: a new Community strategy on health and safety at work 2002-2006, European Commission
Work Injuries and Diseases: Canada 1999-2001. Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, 2002. (Traumatic injuries accounted for 43.4 percent, while chronic disorders accounted for 5.4 percent.)
July 2006
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