Not Just Dust – ORR Update

The first Office for Rail and Road (ORR) briefing of 2018 highlighted risks within the rail industry. Especially for those working with respirable crystalline silica (RCS). For more information view our article ‘Not Just Dust’ earlier this month.

Their figures show each year 800 people die from workplace exposure to RCS.

Their key messages include:

We want to see more rail companies make a public commitment to do more to tackle occupational cancers. With silica second only to asbestos in causing work related cancers, now is the time for the rail industry to show real leadership.

Will your company commit to tackle occupational cancers?

Do your workers appreciate the risks from exposure to concrete, stone, cement and brick dust? Thus, do they know that fine dust particles that can reach deep into their lungs are invisible under normal lighting?

The free ‘NTTL’ silica campaign could be a powerful tool when communicating such messages. Mainline workers should start to see Network Rail-branded versions of the IOSH silica resources as part of their commitment to the NTTL campaign.

For more information on Express Medicals’ silica testing ring us on 0207 500 6900.

The first 2018 quarterly update from the Office for Rail and Road is here.