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UAW Applauds New OSHA Standard on Methylene Chloride

28 September 1998

UAW Applauds New OSHA Standard on Methylene Chloride

    DETROIT, Sept. 28 -- UAW President Stephen P. Yokich today
hailed the newly amended OSHA standard for methylene chloride exposure as "an
important step in the ongoing effort to strengthen health and safety
protections for America's working men and women."
    "The new OSHA standard for methylene chloride is a significant and long
overdue improvement over the previous standard which was based on the science
of the 1940s," said Dr. Frank Mirer, Director of the UAW Health and
Safety Department.
    The amendments to OSHA's 1997 standard, Yokich noted, cap a 13-year effort
by the UAW to protect workers from exposure to unsafe levels of methylene
chloride vapors in the workplace.
    "The UAW's long battle for a tough standard for methylene chloride
exposure," Yokich continued, "demonstrates that this union has the resources,
technical and legal expertise, political skill, and tenacity to make a
difference for working Americans."
    "The UAW is more than just a bargaining agent for its members," Yokich
said.  "We're part of a social movement to improve the lives of working
men and women, whether or not they carry a union card."
    Although the UAW supported OSHA's January 1997 decision to lower the
allowable exposure to methylene chloride to 25 parts per million (ppm) from
500 ppm, the union felt that the medical provisions of the 1997 standard
failed to protect workers against employer retaliation for revealing symptoms
of illness from exposure.
    In January 1998, the UAW sued OSHA in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia, seeking stronger protections for workers.  An industry
group, the Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance, also sued OSHA on the basis
of the costs of implementing the new standard.
    Soon after the lawsuits were filed, the UAW sought out the industry
parties to develop mutually agreeable changes to the 1997 standard that would
make it possible to end the litigation against OSHA.  The parties' proposed
settlement was adopted by OSHA.
    The UAW originally petitioned OSHA for new methylene chloride standard in
November 1985.  In a November 1986 letter to the UAW, OSHA promised "prompt
action" on a new standard.  OSHA finally issued a proposal for a new limit on
methylene chloride exposure in 1991.
    The UAW testified at OSHA's public hearings on the proposed rule in
September 1992, and provided additional technical comments when OSHA re-opened
the record in November 1995 to take into account industry claims that
industry-sponsored studies indicated less risk to workers' health from
exposure to this toxic solvent.
    Exposure to vapors of methylene chloride has been shown to cause damage to
the nervous system, heart, liver, and skin.  Methylene chloride is used to
clean metal and plastic, as a vehicle for adhesives, and in the manufacture
of foamed plastics.  Although the use of methylene chloride has been
significantly reduced or even eliminated at many facilities over the years,
exposure to methylene chloride vapors remains a health issue in a number of
industries, especially furniture and aircraft.