Document e71djL4qGZD41VvoKMz9YNJ5m

INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE FOUNDATION TRANSACTIONS BULLETIN NO. 29 INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE FOUNDATION OF AMERICA MELLON INSTITUTE 4400 FIFTH AVENUE PITTSBURGH 13, PA. jr|i n iu i PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT t 1 TWENTIETH ANNUAL MEETING INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE FOUNDATION OF AMERICA HELD AT MELLON INSTITUTE PITTSBURGH, PA. NOVEMBER 16 and 17, 1955 TRANSACTIONS OF The General Meeting AND --Medical The Conferences-- --Chemical-Toxicological --Joint Medical and Chemical-Toxicological --Legal --Engineering --Joint Engineering and Legal ss*r` 1* , t., . I THE ECONOMICS read an eradle-i' OF INDUSTRIAL HEALTH swimmi tain s N A. R. FISHER President, Johns-Manville Corporation set of the gn swimmi As a trustee of the Industrial Hygiene Foundation, it is only natural, 1 suppose, that I should be quite enthusiastic about its aims and its accomplishments during its twenty years of service to indus Was fl it hoeoi nearby try. To me, the Foundation exemplifies what is being done by pri To vately supported institutions to improve the health of the nation. is to sa When I use the word "health," I do not restrict it to its physio logical sense. My concept of it is much broader than that. And I am sure yours is too. Nowadays when we speak of health, we do not think only about diseases and injuries that alTlict mankind. Equally im portant are the mental well-being and the personal dignity of man should is to -1 is botn lose hi' O, and the members of his family. of Em Throughout, the ages man's well-being has been his chief con nor on cern. Since the dawn of civilization, man has sought protection rollout against common ailments and dreaded epidemics. But for the most ing to: part, man's efforts were individual and inspired by his instinct for | l ' self-preservation. Neither the ruling classes nor private groups paid Canad much attention to the health of the community. promo- Our world is many thousands of years removed from primitive man who first sought shelter in a cave and who later relied on a fanatical medicine man to cure his physical and mental ills. And health tinns - Our I yet, in many regions of the globe, millions of people exist under con It ditions not too unlike (hose of primitive man. Poverty, ignorance ment - and superstitions prevail. Disease is rampant. The death rate is ful v. high. In many areas, human life is considered cheap and expend Serve able. It is a burden to be cast off. helpf- our n The Most Effective Approach '1 It is only in our Western civilization that real progress has group broil made. And the greatest progress has hern recorded in the United ageiv States and Canada. Perhaps there is a definite reason for this. Ours initi. ' is the middle approach. We do not leave the problem of the nation's health entirely to the government. We do not leave it entirely to private groups. Nor do we neglect, it, or merely pay lip service to it. Cone Through experience, we have found our way to be quite effective. Other countries may not agree with the way the nation's health is handled in the United States and Canada. In this connection, I div ill witlu [12] YI 1 1 is only < aims mdusoy pri- mll. plivsio.1 l am i think My im.if man of con nection 'o* most 'net for I is paid i iniitive d on a And Im- connorancts rate is i-xpend- > ess has Uni tod is. Ours nation's u.dy to i t to it. tTeeti ve. ' hralth t ion, I y r ay .< 1 read an editorial in the Wall Street Journal. It dealt with Kurland's cradle-to-grave security. It happened that a man in England went in swimming and lost a set of false teeth he had obtained under Bri tain's National Health Program. The mail's application for a second set of false teeth was turned down by the city's health council on the ground that he had--and I quote--"exercised lack of care by swimming in a rougli sea." This raised some interesting questions. Was the sea rough when the false tooth man first went in or did it become so later? Is that particular sea always rough and are the nearby beaches to he denied all wearers of false teeth? To rule that a man should be denied a second set of false teeth is to say that government responsibility in the matter of false teeth should go so far and no further. But to say that about false teeth is to question the whole scheme of socialized medicine. For someone is bound to ask, as in the case of the false tooth man, how did he lose his own teeth in the first place? Our approach to the health of the nation is different from that of England. Ours is neither a government-controlled health program nor one completely dominated by private enterprise. It is an ex cellent example of state health agencies and private enterprise work ing together for the common good. There are many private organizations in the United States and Canada, all supported by individual contributions and dedicated to promoting the health of the public of both nations. There are also health departments in every state and city. And there arc organiza tions devoted to improving the health of those engaged in industry. Our Industrial Hygiene Foundation is an outstanding example. In addition to these privately supported, local and state govern ment groups, there are several federal health agencies doing wonder ful work. There is, for example, the United States Public Health Service. In my opinion, this excellent organization has been most helpful and cooperative in collaborating with us in industry to solve our many, and at times, complex problems in health. This is a typical American way of doing things. Our private groups utilize the services of the government and our government agencies work with us. In this way, we retain our freedom and our initiative. Concern for the Individual's Welfare As a result., private industry promotes the well-being of the in dividual. Indirectly, we'have our so-called erndle-to-grave security without the heavy hand of government. Directly we in industry are [13] . ( wi<^tiKl.X. >UKHV.af '.'ifc/K'l*-* interested in the c!iii)loyec from (lie day of employment to retire ment. And that covers a good measure of the span of life of most of us. As you all know, industry does this through carefully planned programs based on maintaining a sound mind in a sound body. We need only refer to a few statistics to realize how the nation's health has improved through the combined efforts of state, industry and private groups. In 1900 the life expectancy of the industrial popu lation was 46 years. For the general population it was 52 years. In 1954 the life expectancy of the industrial population was nearly 70 years or an increase of 24 years. And for the general population the life expectancy was also about 70 in 1954, an increase of only J8 years. There are truly significant figures. They show that the life ex pectancy of the general population has increased roughly a third dur ing the last 45 years. And they show that the life expectancy of the industrial population has increased more than a half in this period. These advances have been due to a considerable extent to the amazing achievements of our modern scientists. The figures also shoiv the important part played by industry in improving the health of the nation. It has done so because industry today is directed by enlightened professional managers who realize their obligations and responsibilities to their employees, customers, stockholders and the public. This concern for the individual's welfare, of course, is a rela tively modern idea. At the start of the Industrial Revolution 200 years ago, no one gave a thought to man's health or his dignity. All too frequently employees were looked upon as mere chattels or com modities. Men, women and children were transplanted from homes to factories and mines. Sweatshop conditions prevailed. What little progress there was could hardly be detected. For example, what was considered a milestone in industrial relations oc curred in 1S42, almost a century after the start of the Industrial Revolution. At that time Massachusetts passed a law forbidding chil dren under 12 years of age from working more than 10 hours a day in manufacturing establishments. I mention this merely to point out that the capitalism of a century ago is a far cry from the progressive capitalism existing in the United States and Canada today. Admittedly, early capitalism was primitive, crude and, on oc casion^ inhuman and ruthless. Very little, if any, thought was given to the health, working conditions and general welfare of the em ployees. Nor was any thought given to the effect on the community of fumes, polluted streams, environmental and occupational health hazards and other nuisances of the factory and mine. Amazing progress has been made in eliminating such conditions. ? [14] \Pw;V 1' 111 | of l" tali'ii Slid 1 tinue moil mino shock ago r work few ( little was conci ntten eases the tel high prol and ploy push and hein mot Fro on tre; cim dir< the lair ha\ i Ifir+P* to retire, oi most planned body. TTe o s health iNtry and rial I'OpnVJ yearn, v.is nearly imputation of only 18 he life cxthird durm-v oE the his period, rent to the J - ,7--------- y industry :,e industry u ho realize customers. . is a relaolution 200 dignity. All f els or comfroni homes I tected. For relations oce Industrial bidding cliil1 hours a day to point out e progressive !ay. and, on oedtt was given r of the emn11 eominunity dional health ich conditions. t r .t l But past evils are difficult to live down. Even in this enlightened era of oms the memory of former wrongs still haunts the word capi talism. Those who would undermine our system of private enterprise still build up their strawmen or tilt at fictitious windmills ns they con tinue to hurl their reckless charges about the exploitation of the com mon man. Fortunately they are fast becoming a woefully weak minority. The falsity of their claims is too apparent. Industry has shocked and stunned them by its amazing strides. To he sure, industry's awakening was a slow one. Fifty years ago a few leaders in industry attempted to improve the health and working conditions of employees. But it was just an attempt,. The few efforts that were made were crude and isolated. And precious little financial support was offered. It is not surprising that progress was slow. Then the public's voice was heard. The public's growing concern for the health of the cninkn-ee was forcibly brought to the attention of industry. There were,,just-too many occupational dis eases, too many tragedies in the mines, mills and factories. And to the great credit of industry, the problems were recognized. Industry no longer considered an employee to be a mere chat tel or commodity to be put on the block and auctioned ofF to the highest bidder. Ilis dignity as a human being was acknowledged. Public-spirited men of wealth endowed research institutions to probe into occupational hazards and diseases and to develop methods and procedures to improve the health of the individual, of the em ployee in industry and conditions in the community. Progressive-minded companies established medical clinics. They pushed ahead with health and safety programs. The programs were, and still are, based on taking care of the physical and mental well being of employees, helping and protecting the consumer and pro moting the common good. From Defensive to Offensive In the early days, of coursejjjgiustrial medicine was essentially on the defensive. For the most part its programs were confined to treating injuries and diseases. But in recent, years industrial medi cine has taken the offensive. Its programs are. positive. They are directed at the preventing disease and maintaining good health. In its sincere concern for employees, industry has truly covered the field. Tts entire resources have been mobilized to this end. The talents of engineers, doctors, scientists, chemists and personnel men have all been enlisted in the cause. Through the efforts of industry, [18] / occupational diseases, accidents and other causes of absenteeism have been reduced amazingly. It has been said that each year about a half a billion man days are lost to industry. But of these, only 10 per cent are duo to oc cupational causes. The problem of industry, therefore, is not only to try to reduce occupational absenteeism. Our job is to work with other health organizations iu our economy to reduce the nonoccupational causes of absenteeism. Obviously, such an undertaking requires a vast expenditure of funds. Statistics on this point arc not readily available. But in a survey made in 1951 by the National Association of Manufacturers, it is interesting to nole that almost 1,600 companies spent many mil lions a year on health services. Multiply this figure by the thousands of other companies not surveyed and 1 am sure you will agree with me that modern iniudustry is doing its best to promote the welf^nng qf its employees. We iu industry realize that as good citizens it is part of our obligation to society to help improve the health of the nation as well as the community. Obviously it is also good business, for healthier employees mean less absenteeism and more productivity. Johns-Manville, of course, is but one of many companies that has established health and safety programs. In the thirty-two years that. I have been with Johns-Manville, I have observed the increasing interest in and (lie progress made by our company in the field of occupational health. And our records show that, as long ago as 1895 we established a clinic with a doctor serving part time at our Asbestos Mine in Quebec. One Company's Program Today our program is typical of those in American industry. I mention it only because naturally I am more familiar with it. Johns-Mauvillc's program includes a physical examination when em ployed; continuing preventive health measure^*# periodic examina tions; control of occupational hazards; immediate on-the-job medical care; safety precautions; accident and health insurance; hospitaliza tion; group life insurance; vacations; a pension plan; and plant staffs of medical, industrial hygiene and safety personnel coordinated by a headquarters health department. In past years Johns-Manville has sponsored independent research on vnriofis raw materials and finished products at private research institutions throughout the country. For example, the Industrial Ily- [MG ] giene Found.' our newer pi All of t! employee in : more useful ' Responsibili As with bilitics to tin designed to | constantly proved prod effort is mad and better n Years a of health an product war trial researe safeguard i' consumer. A mini and Inborn! that might lowships fo And in to label pro Burner if he Health an All of consumer, '/ sauces and of the day healthful a Now I In my tern direct aware of mere cmiu ment has the totali! gicne Foundation is currently investigating the properties of one of our newer products. All of these features of our program are based on keeping the employee in good mental and physical health. They enable him to be more useful to himself, his family, his company and his community. Eesponsibility to the Consuming Public . S with the rest of industry, we are also aware of our responsi bilities to the consuming public. Today, the products of industry are designed to promote the health and comfort of the public. Industry is constantly striving to bring about more pleasant living through im proved products at better values to the consumer. Moreover, every effort is made nowadays to protect the consumer with safer products and better methods of handling them. Years ago industrial research was unconcerned about problems of health and safety that might be involv^Mn a product. When the product was developed, it was put on the mpeket. Today our indus trial research organizations probe into every health hazard. And every safeguard is insisted upon before the product is marketed to the consumer. A number of companies have established research organizations and laboratories for the sole purpose of eliminating health hazards that might injure the consumer. Some companies have granted fel lowships for this specific purpose. _ And industry has inspired, to a very great extent, the movement to label properly certain types of products that might harm the con sumer if he were not forewarned., Health and Safety Outgrowth of Free Enterprise System All of these things not only help the individual employee and consumer, but the community at large. Modern plants, in which nui sances and health hazards are reduced to a minimum, are. the order of the day. And in their construction, every consideration is given to healthful and safe working conditions, Now how has this come about f -In my opinion, it is the natural result of the free enterprise sys tem directed by enlightened men of modern management who arc aware of the fact that employees are first of all human beings, not mere commodities to be exploited. Under our system, modern manage ment lias had the freedom to progress. It has not been shackled by the totalitarian state or dictator [17] r j i 3? ' And modern management has been able to finance these costly projects through the profits of the free enterprise system. As a result, industry has not only established its own health and* safety programs. It has also fostered independent research in occu pational health and has benefited through the by-products of this research. All of these efforts are reflected in lower turnover, less absentee ism, and reduced production costs. At the same time, the employee'll health is better, his morale is higher. He and his family live longer and more happily. But despite our amazing progress, there is still a great deal to be done. Many problems have hardly been touched. Some are too big, too baffling, and too complex for one company to finance or to study.. All of them however have a~j]fcct bearing on the nation 's health:; A tremendous job lies ahead of as. ,, "We must solve the tragic riddles of cancer, cerebral palsy, muscu-J lar dystrophy, alcoholism. The common cold still exacts an astro-* nomical toll of absenteeism in industry. We have much to learn about^ mental health and rehabilitation. And in a nerve-wracked world, wei must redouble our efforts to further improve working condition^ through noise abatement, the use of appropriate color schemes and< other devices to promote the well-being of the industrial employee. iv 'J. Continued Cooperation Needed ? I have merely mentioned a few problems that cry out for a solu- tion. These problems call for further cooperation of management,! labor and the government, all working together right down to the] man at the machine. For we all realize that no asset is more vital to a nation than the: health of its people. It affects a nation's happiness, its social welfares its industrial productivity, its moral fibre, its future growth and itsi prosperity. ' There is no doubt in my mind that the job, no matter how gigan-t tic it may seem, can be done. And it can be done within the spirit andj the framework of free and enlightened enterprise. i BOARD OF TRUSTEES ANDREW FIETCHER, Chairman President, St. Joseph Iced Company, Hew York, H. Y. CARL B. POUOOC, Secretory Vic* President, Allegheny lodlum Steal Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa. M. W. THOMPSON, Treowrer General Mortage* ond Treasurer, The Halt Chine Company, Cast Liverpool, O. T. C. WATERS, Genarof Counsel Milet & Slockbridge, Baltimore, Md. V. P. AHEARN Executive Secretary, National Industrial Sand Association, Washington, 0. C H. W. ANDERSON Vice President, General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich. JOHN BUGAS Vice President, Ford Meter Company, Dearborn, Mich. H. K. CLARK Director, The Carborundum Company, Niagara Polls, N. Y. ^ J. DEWEY DORSETT General Monoger, Association of Casualty and Surety Companies, New York, N. Y. PHILIP DRINKER, 5c.D. School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, Moss. A. R. FISHER President, Johni-Manvflle Corporation, New York, N. Y. A. D. ROSS FRASER President, tome Cable Corporation, tome, N. Y. WILLIAM . GIVEN, JR. loord Chairmen, American Broke Shoe Company, New York, N. Y. OSCAR A. GLAESER Vice President, United States Smelting ReBning and Mining Company, Salt loke City, Utoh A. C. MIRTH Oweni'lftinois Glass Company, Toledo, O. HARVEY B. JORDAN xec\rfive Vice President, United Stoles Steel Corporation, Pittsburgh^ Pa. B. E. KUECHLE Vice President, Employers Mutual liability Insurance Company, Wousou, Wit, A. J. LANZA, M.D. The President's Commission on Veterans' Pensions, Washington, D. C GEORGE MIXTER Director, United States Smelting Refining end Mining Company, Boston, Mass. E. V. MURPHREE, Sc.D. President, Esso Research and Engineering Compony. New York, N. Y. ALAN M. SCAIFE Vice President, T. Melton A Sons, Pittsburgh, Po. R. C. TAYLOR Executive Vi<# Preiidenf, American Con Compony, New York, N. V. C. RICHARD WALMER, M.D. Managing Oirectar, Industrial Hygiene Fo>jndot*on, Pittsburgh, Po. W. P. YANT, Sc.D. Director, Research end Development, Min* Safety App!>on<es Company, Pitf\bwrgh, Po. *i *.