Speech by Marcel Le Guen FNSC.CGT
Ladies and Gentlemen, friends and comrades. Here
11 years, France banned the import, marketing and manufacture of products containing asbestos. Here
11 years, under pressure from the public advocacy groups for victims and the union, the government gave what he had always refused.
employees tore a huge mess of repair caused by a handful of people raging around the world for whom the profit curve is more important than the lives of human beings.
We got to go fast,
1 / entitled to compensation according to fixed schedules via a special fund, The FIVA.
Between June 2006 and May 2007, FIVA recorded a total of 22,681 claims.
87, 2% of victims were recognized as an occupational disease by Social Security.
94% of asbestos victims are men.
From 2005 to 2006 the number of diseases is 5425 for non-cancer diseases (asbestosis, pleural plaques or thickening)
to 1022 for lung cancer
At 589 for mesothelioma.
In 2006:
pleural plaques and thickening accounted for 72.9% of cases received asbestosis: 5.5% on lung cancer : 13.7% mesothelioma: 7.9%
Between June 2006 and June 2007:
by the victims already dead when they enter the device was 15.3% of total cases. 55% of victims are from four regions:
Nord-Pas-de-Calais (16.9%)
Pays de la Loire (15.7%)
Upper Normandy (11.9%)
Lower Normandy (10.2%)
45% of victims who make a folder are represented by a lawyer, an association, organization or association. Since its inception on
Fiva has 32,784 core offerings.
Since the beginning of its activity until May 31 2007, FIVA paid to 1.436 billion euros to all the people (victims or survivors) who submitted an application. On
1.43 billion paid: 30%
involve victims with fibrosis (plaques and thickening 30%: Asbestosis: 5%). 34% of victims of cancer (7% mesothelioma: cancer broncho - pulmonary: 27%)
49% of patients with fibrosis have a sum greater than EUR 20 000.
55% of patients with cancer have a sum greater than EUR 80 000.
the date the report was the Fiva 931 subrogation actions underway including 626 actions inexcusable the employer before the TASS.
2 / can pretend to retire early retirement from 50 years seniority and on condition of belonging to companies known officially.
In January 2008, Minister of Labour has established a working group whose mission is to "refocus" the device early retirement of workers to asbestos (CAATA)
Nearly 50,000 workers have already benefited this device, but it is costly to employers mainly through the contribution of funds Workers' Compensation - Occupational Diseases (AT / MP) and the state, where the pressures of MEDEF and initiatives of the Ministry of Labour to change the mechanism and make access more difficult.
This is the purpose of the mission entrusted to a member who had already distinguished himself by writing a scandalous history of asbestos when he chaired the parliamentary commission on the issue of risks and consequences of exposure to asbestos.
The working group was thus seen as an objective to "reposition the device on people with really been exposed to asbestos" ... Ie it will not suffice to prove having been employed in a particular company or a particular industry sector designated by ministerial order.
The "potential beneficiaries will provide reliable evidence" on their last solo show, while everyone knows that in most cases it is impossible for workers who were exposed to obtain a certificate of employers' exposure to asbestos.
However, all is not settled, the repair much remains to be done, including extending the system to all diseases.
While the battle was not easy, but it was conducted.
We have conducted. even though we had plenty of waiting,
We failed to convince workers weighed the very likelihood of loss of job and the visceral fear that endangerment does not lead to a fatal outcome.
Good souls still say that in these times we would have preferred the fight for wages to the detriment of the struggle for health.
this is a mistake, even if wages were part of our legitimate concerns, employment was sacked by the unemployment and layoffs.
When we told them the danger of asbestos workers the answer was unanimous "we did not know it was dangerous when we came home eternit, we may be sick and you suggested we lose our work,"
They fought for jobs requiring the application of new technologies already implemented in countries of northern Europe. Eternit met too expensive.
Note also that the week following the ban, business being business, the machines start production of asbestos-free.
I know it's true, I was there, I was part of the workforce 28 years of Eternit.
So Or were they the talkers, patrons, legislators and other donors lessons yet for the majority of them as the first responsibility to monitor and legislate on matters of public safety to protect people and employees or less. All
glorified the controlled use of asbestos, the French government, EEC, employers, finally, scientists and lawyers with the notable exception of a handful that I do not cite, and they they recognize to.
We continue to believe that this result has been made possible only because workers have finally mobilized around their union and their advocacy groups and rode a very strong pressure of public opinion relayed by the media.
victorious in court actions in number with mixed results in the amounts allocated for the repair, centralized business of asbestos in health centers in Paris and Marseille. The health center
court has to consider indictments of stooges.
For 10 years, the judges will succeed while the real culprits run happy days in their golden retirement.
Surveys Parliamentarians are reported and leave a feeling of bitterness ... it's better than if they had not existed, they served to illuminate at least on the facts and confirm that denounced the union for a long time. Without doubt
can we have a certainty is that there is more than manufacturing products containing asbestos in France.
But is it the same on the marketing and import of dangerous products in France and perhaps elsewhere ...?.
This is a real issue because the controls are not carried out by relevant departments such as Customs because the guidelines do not have their data ...
Without doubt we can have another certainty is that business and government that the justice of our country and the state council have felt guilty and have no remorse to question what they were led to concede because of irreparable mistakes they have committed the man and his environment. The "Clemenceau" is the most visible evidence.
However, employers must reckon with the union, associations of victims and our ability to mobilize the example of the day of mobilization on October 13 2007 which was attended by 20,000 people. This event
victims of occupational accidents and diseases were to:
to demand better compensation for victims of occupational accidents and occupational diseases,
To oppose the transposition into the status of agreements signed between the social partners on the prevention and occupational risks, including the questioning of the definition of gross negligence of the employer given by the Court of Cassation in February 2002,
It seems that the overriding concern government is not to register and frankly correctly in a courageous move to repair and this is properly the business of employers.
If doubts existed, the government is preparing to challenge the precautionary principle. Also in France
we estimate 80 kg per capita asbestos geographically dispersed, these are prima facie evidence of accountability, so there is need to initiate a thorough decontamination work.
This work is undertaken, it is a huge market, asbestos removal sites are increasing, not always visible and sometimes illegal. Sites are made at night, quickly ... The yards are transformed into real fortifications to avoid the eyes of intruders.
Labour Minister takes stock of the campaign checks from September 1 to November 15, 2006 on carcinogens and asbestos.
936 sites were visited by officers of labor inspection and prevention services of social security funds (CRAM and SSTC)
In 76% of cases, abnormalities were found and 29% of the risk assessments are unsatisfactory. Resulting in:
68 minutes, 86 stops
yards, 4
warnings, injunctions
8 521 comments written or oral.
These numbers, higher than 2005
Nothing moves, though. They were convicted of these crimes and continue to endanger the lives of others. !
The construction workers are particularly vulnerable in a multitude of business operations in various trades, demolition, drilling, removal of materials ect.ect
This work scraping with port combination is in addition to the risks asbestos, very painful.
Our union has asked the court in the country and of Europe at inventing a PLC to go remove the asbestos on flat surfaces. No answer.
It is clear that all we need strong action to consolidate the receipts of the struggle for ban on asbestos, assistance to victims.
We need a global ban of ALL asbestos fibers.
Everything will be done and won in the fight against asbestos will be useful reference and to combat all substances that endanger the lives of employees and the public
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