Document pLXLDvza4jdnM3Z7O24z7bmj

FILE NAME: Asbestos Mining (ASMI) DATE: 1955 DOC#: ASMI028 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Published Presentation from IHF Annual Meeting - The Economics of Industrial Health 1955 / Sf-- ih I ( -7 7 M M . It 4 A IIO O A I II. e v i l ! i 1 I i I fl 1 1 a1 INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE FOUNDATION MELLON' LNSTITUTE 4100 FIFTH AVENUE OF AMERICA FITTSnURCII 13. FA. I \I \ \ '"n rw rryyrr* ** i I i I the econom ics OF INDUSTRIAL HEALTH * A. R. FISHER PttiiJtnt, Jahnt-MtnvilU Corporation imn.rU 3I trUS'e ofI tl,eI Imius,riaI ITW > e Foundation, it is or.lv Zand its \accSoliln!p'PM,-NThmtp,Wiitts 1d,mSl-lm 'plMr it|sJCtueiitv"-vtohnu.-siasne nhout. its a, s'leclhjTosUpI,o,,od .... . io,,s lw0i',,in,,ppirionvccs ||le |lMlUt i cof Zthc X `I n ' .osica, s e n ,. M.v r,,,,c,,,, of i l t J X X n X n ' X X on) about (Iimmnos ami injuries that afflict portae, are aiK, ,,,e pe and the members of his family. ee m Th5UgIl0l.It t!!C n~CS nia.n>. w! l!-bcin? !' ,, n . 1^TM y a" been his chief eon- p a rirl'n T X ^ . celf-nrcscrvnHon'' V ^ 0 ,nd,v,tlu.al :" ul ,ns!>ired by his instinct for much attention to the hcal l hVf ' "tv P n ' atC ^ m a n ^ rt 1 t al nicdicine TM to ^ o; b; y and superstitions prevail. D is e .^ T 'r a m p n n L \ a b l e . ` ItV a^ b u rd en 'to t e w s " off? ' ' C nSidcrcd chcP and Pend- Thc Most Effective Approach p rir,,;;:::,!: [ 12] ^ < 'iOt-t Journal. It dealt with Fnglaud s pciied that a man in Kngland uent in e tooth lie had obtained tinner Hri- The man's application for a second down by the city's health cot noil on I quote-- "exercised lack of care by in,.-, raised some interestiu^: questions. fnWo tooth man first went in or did icular sea always toneli and are the i wearers of false teeth? 1 be denied a second set of false teeth 'aisihilitv in the matter of false teeth rr. But to say that about false teeth r of socialized medicine. For someone " of the false tooth man, how did he place 1 i,); of the nation is different from that . co ecru me nt-con trolled health program by private enterprise. It is an ex igencies and private enterprise work ed. . canizations in the United States and idual contributions and dedicated to blic of both nations. There are also ate and city. And there are oignnizao health of those engaged in industry, rdation is an outstanding example, telv supported, local and state govern i federal health agencies doing wonderpie, the United States Bublm Health excellent organization lias b en most .ehornting with us in industry to solve ex problems in health, in way of doing things. Our private the government and our goxornment way, we retain our freedom and our Welfare .t v promotes the well-being ol the inour so-called crndle-to grave security comment. Directly we in industry arc I ... - -.1. i'" TM * *rrot,ps. I,, v j y V; cliu, , s . n['^ n s health f y ^ t r c 1 TM the last 4.1 vears ' \ ,,,''!! ;`t,0n I,a,i ' W ,,! ,.n,, , ,'nt ti,c l,fc ox- 0 miprovjn th heni.i, <,, *C lmPrtant part nhv 1 . . - ' too frequently enip!0VeP, 1 ' U?ht to man's }lenlth or Rcxnlu^on 200 ; to factories and mines s? ,drcn w*re tr a n sp la n t,,iC,s 0r corn* ' ' Yht little progress th'-' P Cndi,ious Prevailed 0'" Jl0,ne;i I` c i m d Il ' ? 4 r a L i t Sidei'('Cd " ' "' o n ? inai X t . F" devolution. At that tf `\ rCcatui'.v after thc starf'^fU 1 rcI,'ltions oc- jdrenuundfe,,rlu]*;>n5v ` TMc" 'i-f'^"n.c.h..u..s.-ett.s wpnvJ ' n 1" ff tt,lc" .i.n..d.u..s..t.rial thaf enp-.alism of a a ^ 1 ,,,e" `io <>"* r c h T ' " * ^ capitalism exist jn~ c\' tllry npo is a far erv (V i ,,0|t out e .^ ; : ' : : r *" - Z r ; : ; r ^ Z c z z z .0s : S r ; - t e :. 'V o r " r1 ~ ^ Z ! J u Z n ' rr:"m- en' Z Z ,, u , Z Z M ""'........ j '" condilioiu I ! or our, tin. memory o. lormvr wrtm-s still ham.ta tllc ,, . ,, j capi. still tilin ' " l; 'V""U' 'ir system of private ratemrke build U|. Unr .sir.au.,m,. or nit :,t r,eiit,o.is wmdimlls -,s rnn S - `- i t a ,TM * c,',: sr ,wto^ * To be sure, industry s awakenm*.: was a slow one T.yr,.. a eo a few ieaiivrs i,, ,,;,l,Mry at,l.,,,,,,e,l i m . l v he ^ . i ^ rorktn; com of employes. Bat it was just an attempt 1H l e t a i " " ' re '"a"C cn,<1'-' larch And precious x z f f i F ~ - r t r s r ^ r c : concern for the health of the employee was 'forcibK- W h l'T o T e it * ~ 1 r n 1 ''iKb. mills and factories And te> the great credit of industry, tiro problems were recognized. ` Industry no longer considered an employee to be a mere chat ghboests tb'.TMdde;r. IhI,'s dtignity 0a,s1 a,h'huMmank b"eidng was ackntofwle.0dge!d, T1rn>1PUb),C'SPinte(1 men 0f wealth cndowl research institutions to probe .nto oecupnunna1 hazards and diseases and to develop methods and procedures to improve the health of the individual, of the emP 0} ec in industry and conditions in the community. Progressive-minded companies established medical clinic* am pushe ahea,! with health ami sau-iy pratrrnm, Tile J Z L I c r T d still me. based ou taking care of the physical and mental w d l' S r ^ -- - ~ .1 I I From Defensive (o Offensive on I1" w Parly '"`lostrial me.lieine mas essentially on l,c defensive. For the m e part its programs were C , rUUt in -1-trial ^ direct T m U' nir,,.n,t,ve- I,s l'r0-ratns are positive. Thov are directed at the prevent..,- ,l.Va,,. and maintaining good health. thhee ffiodldd*. 5 hIt"s ,0eTnt-irenrCels'oru"rcresr hr,a,,vpeIol',,Vv,>,,,!- mi,,odbui<li:s,re.vd htas thtriis.lvnucloveTr!e,de talents of engineers, doctors, scientists. chemists an,I personnel men mC bCC" C,,l,Ntc,`l 1,1 lllc caustf- Through the efforts of industry, [15] ' occupational KMMtlfiit.s ami other causes of absenteeism have been reduced am.i/umly. It lias been said that oaeh year about a half a billion man days are lost to industry. Hut of these. only 10 per cent are due to oc cupational causes. The problem of industry, theretore, is not only to try to reduce occupational absenteeism. Our job is to work with other health mganiz.itimis in our economy to reduce the nonoeeupa- -tioiinl causes of absenteeism. Obviously, such an uudertakim: requires a vast expenditure of funds. Statistics on this point are not readily available Hut in a survey made in l'-Jol by the National Association of Manufacturers, it is interesting to note that almost 1,000 companies spent many mil lions a year on health services. Multiply this figure by the thousands of other companies not surveyed and I am sure you will agree with me that modern iniudustry is doin'.' its lu-st to promote tlsc wrll-hcins: of its employee-. "We in industry realize that as rood 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 the progress made by our company in the field of occupational health. And our records show that as long ago ns IS`15 we established a clinic with a doctor1 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-Manville's program includes a physical examination when em ployed; continuing preventive health measures .and 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 stalls of medical, industrial hygiene and safety personnel coordinated by a headquarters health department. In past years Johns-Manville has sponsored independent research on various raw materials and iinished products at private research institutions throughout the country. For example, the Industrial Hy- [1C] Eitn( Foundation in e r r .! , - i . v . i Catin; the properties of one of our newer products. All of these features oftu.r . bascd 0n keeping the Uh Thcv cuablc him to be Z & Z t t S his'family, his company and his community. . I Responsibility to the Consuming Public s s s E S S A. win, tile rent of injury. we or. Also AWArc of our respons,. bilitic/'ss to the consuming pno li-ic. lIo'nddni>v, ttlie pProducts of inTdus.try, rvaries E isrr i ' : cl,;wad.;;-s; ^ ^ > * * " * i>roduc,s .nd heller methods of handling them. Years aSo industrial of health and surety that might be m' ' c0J V 1T , our mdus. lloowwsshniijnss ifuor this specif.ic pu- rp,ose. . ^rpnt extent the movement - i t0 V *- - - Burner if he were not forewarned. " Health aid' Safety Outgrowth of Free Enterprise System All of these thir.es not only help the Individual employ and `ofThe dTy. S in .heir .ruction. every eons.dera,,... ,s E,ven to healthful and safe working conditions. Now how has this come about! . V k the natural result of the free enterprise s>s- In nn opini , pf ]mHlcrn management who arc oware of lb, ;Wt t j , r i|,,..r ,,,,r ,,,o,ler,, rm re e- T en' iT T lT ; tim tuE-do,,' .0 ftoeree, l. has not hern sluekled hy the totalitarian stale or dictator.^ [H ] I L . _________ I j 11 i , i i And modern management lias been able to finance these costly projects through the profits of the iiec 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 arc retlccted in lower turnover, less absentee ism, and reduced production costs. At the same time, the employee's health is better, his morale is higher. lie and his family live longer and more happily. But despite our amarine progress, there is still a great deal to he done. Many problems have hardly been touched. Some arc tod hie, loo baffling, and too complex for one company to finance or to study. All of them however have a direct bearing on the nation's health. A tremendous job lies ahead of us. "We must solve the tragic riddles of eaneer, cerebral palsy, muscu 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, we must redouble our efforts to further improve working conditions through noise abatement, the use of appropriate color schemes and other devices to promote the well-being of the industrial employee. 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 wc 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 welfare, ita industrial productivity, its moral fibre, its future growth and iu prosperity. There is no doubt in my mind that the job. no matter bow gigan tic it may seem, can be done. And it can be done within the spirit ami the framework of free and enlightened enterprise. conform (o the rule of ordinary care. In my view, the cost of an intentional injury or damage should he home by the industry as a cost of doing lni'inc-s, niiu'li as is the purchase of a piece of laud for a new factory site. If such insurance were made available, it strikes me that it would impair in seme measure at least the sanction which should impel each human to respond to his duties not to gain by the violation of the rights of another. MODERATOR DORSETT: \o u have "one over that pretty well. Is there anybody in the audience who would like to comment oil that? MR. "WATERS: I would like to answer his comment with an other question, Mr. Moderator. What is the nature of the restrictions that arc contained in insurance policies to which you refer in this question? MR. DAILY: Well, by definition of occurrence as we now find it . presently used hy the major insurance carriers, it excludes coverage for liability growing out of an intentional wrong. MR, WATERS: Well, is there any monetary limitation of lia bility? There is a monetary limitation of liability contained in all such policies, isn't that correct? MR. DAIL"i : Yell. yes. I don't know of any insurance company that writes an unlimited policy, do you? . MODERATOR DORSETT: No. UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I would like to ask Mr. Daily to give au example of au intentional wrong. MR. DAILY: Well, if an industry runs a paper mill and pollutes the stream beside it and knows that it is by that pollution injuring the value of the property along the stream and continues to pollute, it is intentionally damaging the riparian owners or the people who own land next to the stream. MODERATOR DORSETT: We will go on to the next question. This is addressed to Mr. Daily and Mr. Jackson. " What is the proper function of the insurance carrier as respects pollution control in an insured industry?" Mr. Daily. MR. DAIIA : I do not believe that industry can. hy insuring its liability, di\est itself of full rcsponsilnltiy lor proper pollution eon . trol. The carrier should, if it undertakes to provide such coverage-- and it shouldn't undertake to provide it unless it can do these things --give every aid and assistance to management. It should provide for standards and techniques. It should assist in setting up controls. It should provide the know-how. In short, it should provide the t >eory of control so to speak, but the duties of application must ever remain with management. The moment management fastens on the notion either consciously or unconsciously tint because insurance is in the picture it is not responsible, that is, that its responsibility has shifted to the carrier the battle of control is 50 per cent lost. ' Should the carrier accept such an untenable position, it will he required to attempt the frequently impossible task of seeking action from persons not within its control, and even thonirh the employees . of management arc sympathetic and cooperative, the carrier cannot from a cost standpoint provide the constant attention and supervision which such a controlled program requires. .. MR. JACJCSON: I would concur entirely with Mr. Daily. It is management's responsibility. _ MODERATOR DORSETT: This question is addressed to Mr. IJcmcon and Mr. Jackson. " Arc there any important new cngin.->rmg developments respecting dust collection for avoiding air pollution nuisances7 What procedure should be followed by a company in the selection, of the most suitable dust collector?" Mr. Ilemeon. MR. HEMEON: In the sense of discovery of a new principle such as electrostatic precipitation and the like, no, there are none I do, however, want to emphasize a point which seems to me to be frequently overlooked. Wc have in existence now adequate equipment for controlling any oust air pollution problems that exist. The prob ems arc economic problems. More particularly. I think it unfortunate that there is such a general lack of interest in attempts to measure *d 1.0 rate (nc relative importance of d i i W t emissions in a com munity. Since the air pollution problem is such a vast one, it is most logical to adopt the philosophy of first things first and, therefore to seek methods and procedures to define what requires primary'at tention fust. what is second, and so on. There is an additional point of importance. One prime illustra tion of what to me is a fundamental e. ror in consideration of air pollution due to particulate matter is one that I emphasized in the paper I gave at one of the Foundations meetings a few vears a-o and a point which I would like to reemphasize now, and that is thisThe almost universal tendency to rate emissions from stacks on the basis of what they look like to the man on the street as lie walks hv and not only that, hut to the engineer in the plant as lie walks through ' [ 272 ] '7 mi ' w* i s ; ; rr'" rs importance of emissions m 'terms of !,nJ m^ch fumes' or' smok*1'^ dost oppress t0 be comm; out of t|lt c|,, ,, ,, , y 0ur s ' r to bo very seriously impaired unless see modify that 4 ,, ;,',, mt E "" MODERATOR nonSE T T : sir. Jackson. collection^TW^irf ' Tl'' r' method of dust eon.vUon f o T cnclncerln; approaches to dust `le"'rmmi"" " h:.. .he rk-ht engineering skills, knowledge of nil f ,1 in collection cq u m m em tsf'o , r " L S . r The control of dust aod 1,TM 4 ' A11 ot t!ie ,,iVclo'>mp"t! r,7s -- . - r - - - ' - i . SLSSZ . S k s w S JACKSON : I t!iink the manufacturer responsibility to irientifV tm k;. j . , S has a verv d>(ln'i ' cr> delimte rem aml^UiaV h l W * " '"V ''" ' <**1 * f - additional z r t * * * * ? requirements of industry or' ,nommment. y dCSr" ' s'11,!ificd ,bt I know within our own con,pony, o,,r medleol deportment h u [273] furll,cr briaW^r^cl^mTcoktmo* c 'n T ''<,c' T,lis is fr H'< ; r f a i i V . " " ' i ' " 1; MODERATOR DORSI-'TT- On <)ual;ficotiou, for a,, ,, p , rt ;nd,, " ' ,T r `'"CSli "' " W '* TM the 13 a God one. .Mr. Ileincon. I' J?,CI,C engineering?" That MR. IIEMROV- I 'viii - definition of export is. [ tJ'nfc'n-.c'Mu-vcr'-11, d' Pe" tU " r t a t J'our t moons vrl.cn it con.cs to component ,,1 ra" ir" "s ''hat detin.t,on involvino doe,-re Ce * " " " f * Tllcre is "'= the of men vrl,,, ore ^ ' ' ' r' ''err groo, ,,,,,,.her prams who have as good a knowIerW Pf '' `J 'U or appo.ircd on pr0- ore labeled as exports. I think- it turns on'v-ou "t "S ,vho MB ,r.VTEI!<i n , , , ,u r,'s o n -'o u r defin.t.onof the term. mi,tees, I wish IhanlTvoL "u M,J Lc' =1 Con,- sho.rn ,n this p a r t i c u l a r J ,, , `? tc,'?st " `at yon have thonk the .Moderator and i, '', 0,` "!' W 'alf, I vrould like t,, eellcnt presentation ,l,at tie r L llle Paw l for the cv. hove been d,sonssins . M h" ' c " uk1c 01 subjects which " c [27-1)