Asbestos is a highly dangerous, cancer-causing substance. Environmental and occupational exposure to asbestos is known to contribute to the high burden of cancer in Europe, causing many avoidable deaths. 78% of cancers recognised as occupational cancer in the EU and 88% of occupational lung cancers are asbestos-related. EU legal protection of workers from the specific risks of exposure to asbestos dates back to 1983. The most recent piece of legislation is the Asbestos at Work Directive 2009/148/EC which was revised in 2023.
Practical advice for employers and workers
The revised Asbestos at Work Directive has significantly lowered the binding occupational exposure limit for asbestos and set other provisions. This is the reason why the Commission will develop until December 2025 guidelines to facilitate the implementation of the revised Directive. The European Commission's Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion (DG EMPL) will be assisted by the external service provider RPA Europe Prague s.r.o. in implementing this project.
The aim of the document is to provide practical advice on preventing and reducing occupational exposure to asbestos for employers, workers, occupational health and safety services and experts, and others concerned with advice on the safe management of asbestos at work.
A series of online workshops will be organised in October and November 2024
As a part of the project, a series of online workshops to gather experts and stakeholders’ views on the potential structure and contents of the guidelines, including the specific good practices and measures that can be included in the document, will be organised:
| Workshop | Workshop date | Start-finish (CET) |
| WS01 Asbestos in buildings: Identification & detection | Wed 30/10/24 | 9am-5pm |
| WS02 Asbestos in buildings: Removal | Tue 12/11/24 | 9am-5pm |
| WS03 Air exposure measurement | Mon 18/11/24 | 9am-5pm |
| WS04 Passive exposure & secondary exposure | Fri 22/11/24 | 9am-1pm |
| WS05 Health surveillance | Wed 4/12/24 | 9am-1pm |
| WS06 Waste transport and disposal | Fri 29/11/24 | 9am-1pm |
| WS07 Asbestos in ships & trains | Tue 19/11/24 | 9am-1pm |
| WS08 Emergency services and firefighting | Tue 3/12/24 | 9am-1pm |
| WS09 Asbestos in mining & quarrying | Wed 27/11/24 | 2pm-5.30pm |
| WS10 Road construction, rail ballast, hardcore | Tue 26/11/24 | 9am-1pm |
DG EMPL welcomes all asbestos experts and interested stakeholders at any of the workshops. Please click here to indicate which workshops you would like to attend. You will subsequently receive an invitation with a videoconference link. If you do not receive a calendar invitation with a videoconference link, please email asbestos-guide
rpaltd [dot] co [dot] uk (asbestos-guide[at]rpaltd[dot]co[dot]uk) to let our service provider know. If you are aware of any other contacts that may be interested in participating, please forward this information to them.
Related document
Sources
Details
- Publication date
- 16 October 2024
- Author
- Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion