MEPs vote on rules to protect workers from the risks of exposure to asbestos

MEPs voted by an overwhelming majority (614 votes for, 2 against and 4 abstentions) for a directive which divides the occupational exposure limit by ten: it will go from 0,1 to 0,01 asbestos fibers per cubic centimeter (cm²), a rule already applied in France since 2015.

After a transition period of six years, Member States will have to adopt a more precise technology to detect fine fibers: electron microscopy. They will then have two options: either measure the fine fibers, in which case the maximum exposure limit value will remain at 0,01 f/cm², or not measure the fine asbestos fibers, and in this case the maximum limit value d The exposure will be reduced to 0,002 f/cm².

Even though all forms of asbestos have been banned in the European Union (EU) since 2005, asbestos fibers are still present in millions of buildings and infrastructure, and responsible for the deaths of 70.000 people per year in Europe. In total, 78% of occupational cancers recognized in EU member states are linked to exposure to asbestos.

Dragos Pîslaru (Renew), president of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, paid tribute to the rapporteur of this file, the Frenchwoman Véronique Trillet-Lenoir (Renew), who died on August 9, 2023. She “said fought tirelessly for the health of European citizens,” he said of the woman who was also a cancer specialist.

"These new asbestos rules significantly reduce the level of asbestos to which workers are exposed, protecting them from dangerous carcinogens. But, because there is no safe level of asbestos exposure, the new "The rules also protect workers by providing them with protective clothing and respiratory equipment, protecting those on the front lines of the wave of building renovations," he continued in a statement.

The Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt welcomed this vote. “France welcomes the progress made by this text and reaffirms its commitment to making the prevention of occupational risks and the protection of the health and safety of workers its absolute priority,” he declared.

The EU Council, which brings together the 27 member countries, will still have to formally approve the text before its publication in the Official Journal of the EU and its entry into force.