Canada’s largest labor organization has delayed a decision about calling for an asbestos ban despite high rate of mesothelioma in Canada’s asbestos mining region

Mar 1, 2008

The Canadian Labour Congress has put on hold any decision about whether the labor group will call for a ban on asbestos mining because of pressure from its affiliate in Quebec, Canada’s asbestos mining region. After decades of refusing to criticize the asbestos mining industry, last fall the Canadian Labour Congress’ president expressed embarrassment about Canada’s role in the global asbestos trade and said the group would call for a ban on asbestos production at its next meeting. Apparently, at that next meeting, the president of the Quebec Federation of Labour, who insists that working in asbestos mines is safe and that people have simply developed a “psychosis” about asbestos, persuaded CLC officials to delay the decision pending the results of the new Health Canada study on chrysotile asbestos. See related story.

On the other hand, the International Labour Organization, the World Health Organization, the International Association for Cancer Research and many other health agencies call asbestos a deadly threat, and Quebec, the center of Canada’s asbestos industry, has one of the highest rates of the asbestos-related cancer mesothelioma in the world. Almost all of Canada’s asbestos is exported to developing nations, and the All India Trade Union Congress, India’s second largest union, has now appealed for help from the CLC in asking the Canadian government to stop exporting asbestos to India.

For the full story, go to CBC News.

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