Air ducts used in heating and air conditioning systems. Rain gutters. Outdoor signs, siding, and metal roofs. These are just a few of the items that sheet metal workers fabricate or install. The job has always paid well, and the work is a point of pride for those who’ve pursued it. Industry professionals boast that sheet metal work is “the only trade that fabricates what we install” and describe sheet metal workers as artists as well as mechanics.[1]
Sheet metal work is both demanding and rewarding, but it has also proven to be dangerous for those who pursued the trade in the years before 1973, when asbestos use was prevalent. Many sheet metal workers who started in the industry before that year have been diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases, including malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis, and asbestos-related lung cancer, while others exposed to asbestos-contaminated products installed before that date continue to be at risk.[2]
Sheet Metal Workers and Asbestos
Sheet metal work is wide-ranging and impressive. It includes everything from building church steeples to HVAC systems, from welding at power plants and stainless-steel work in commercial kitchens to Navy battleships. Sheet metal workers could be found in railroad shops and construction sites, airfields, and military installations.
Unfortunately, in the years before asbestos was identified as a carcinogenic material, the creative and necessary work that sheet metal workers performed turned out to be life-threatening too, as the materials that these professionals worked with and around were often contaminated with asbestos. It put them at risk for a wide range of serious and fatal asbestos-related diseases.
Multiple studies have confirmed that death from asbestos-related diseases occurs at a higher rate in sheet metal workers as compared to the general population and that this impact was directly related to exposure to asbestos in items they worked with or near. The material was found in gaskets, in asbestos-containing insulation, and in fireproofing materials as they were being installed. They worked on or around beams that had previously been fireproofed with asbestos, and renovated asbestos-insulated metal ventilation systems. Most dangerous of all was their exposure to sprayed-on asbestos.[3]
Spray-on asbestos coatings were regularly used by sheet metal workers as thermal and anti-condensation insulation for the undersides of roofs, the sides of industrial buildings, and as acoustic insulation in theaters and other areas where the quality of sound was important. It was also used as fire protection on steel and to reinforce concrete beams and columns. Because the material was dispensed as an aerosol, it spread widely in the areas where it was used and the droplets, which contained asbestos fibers, were easily inhaled.[4]
In 1973, a ban on spray-on asbestos materials was enacted under the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants. A study conducted years after the ban examined its impact and revealed its significant impact on health and safety outcomes for sheet metal workers. It dramatically reduced the prevalence of respiratory disease, parenchymal disease, and pleural diseases.[3]
What is the Risk Posed by Exposure to Asbestos?
It is hard to imagine a time when the mention of asbestos didn’t raise alarm, but the mineral’s dangers were not made public before the 1980s. The group of six minerals that asbestos represents are all fibrous, silicate-based substances that can easily be pulled apart into bundles of long, thin fibers that break down easily when exposed to any kind of stress.
Though raw asbestos and asbestos materials that have been broken down may appear fragile, the material is quite strong. It was long prized for its ability to withstand heat and fire, insulate against sound, and resist the effect of chemicals and electrical charge. It is also inexpensive and easily accessible, and this is why it’s been relied upon for centuries for myriad applications.
While asbestos was valued as a strengthening, insulating component, exposure to its fibers can be lethal. The fibers that make it so flexible and easy to use for varied purposes are also easily inhaled or ingested when they’ve broken down into microscopic particles. Those seemingly harmless specks of dust have pointed ends that easily embed themselves in the lining of the cavity that holds the lungs or abdominal organs, or into other organs where they cause cell death, mutations, and the growth of deadly tumors.
Illnesses caused by exposure to asbestos include:
- Cancer – Asbestos is carcinogenic. It has been linked to several types of cancer including lung, ovarian, laryngeal, esophageal, pharyngeal, stomach, colorectal, bile duct, and prostate cancer, as well as leukemia.
- Mesothelioma – Asbestos is most frequently linked to this rare and deadly form of cancer that forms in a specialized organ that forms a protective lining of several cavities in the body. Mesothelioma can affect the pleural cavity, the peritoneal cavity, the pericardial cavity, and the testicular cavity.
- Asbestosis – Asbestos can cause scarring of lung tissue that makes it difficult to breathe. It is characterized by chronic cough, tightness in the chest, and pain. It is a progressive, irreversible disease.
Many asbestos-related diseases have long latency periods. They grow slowly and invisibly inside the body, only beginning to show symptoms until decades have gone by. If you are a sheet metal worker who was exposed to asbestos, it is important to let your physician know about your exposure history so that they can carefully monitor your health.
What Do Sheet Metal Workers Do?
Sheet metal workers are skilled professionals who fabricate, install, maintain, and recondition sheet metal products. These products are used in applications as diverse as heating and cooling systems, roofing, shipbuilding, and drainage systems. Some work in factories and others work in shipyards or railyards. Some work on construction sites while others work in sign fabrication. In all cases, they have expertise in measuring, marking and laying out sheets of metal for specific purposes; operating specialized tools for cutting, bending, or straightening metal sheets; polishing metal; and welding sheets of metal together. Some sheet metal workers have expertise in testing and balancing to make sure that the metal sheets that have been installed work as they are supposed to.[5]
How Were Sheet Metal Workers Exposed to Asbestos?
Sheet metal workers were at significant risk of workplace exposure to asbestos. The mineral was used to insulate many of the facilities in which they worked. It was part of the drywall and building materials used on construction sites. It was prevalent in boiler rooms and in shipyards where sheet metal workers worked constantly, and many sheet metal professionals worked near insulation and drywall installers and breathed in the dust that their work raised. Additionally, sheet metal workers wore asbestos-containing gear meant to protect them from the high heat generated by their work.
Most dangerous of all to sheet metal workers was the material that they worked with directly. Many of the metals they were asked to cut or bend were adjacent to parts and insulation that contained asbestos, and after their work was completed the sheet metal workers often applied spray-on adhesive to strengthen and support the work they’d done.
The risk of asbestos to sheet metal workers was greatest in the years before 1973, when spray-on asbestos was used regularly and sheet metal workers were constantly working with and surrounded by asbestos-containing materials. But the risk to sheet metal workers continues today. This is because asbestos remains hidden in buildings and equipment from years ago, before the material was known to be dangerous.
Studies of the Impact of Asbestos on Sheet Metal Workers
Sheet metal workers are disproportionately diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases as compared to the general public or other occupations. The Sheet Metal Workers International Association and the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning National Association formed the Sheet Metal Occupational Health Institute Trust to study the health impact of the mineral on sheet metal professionals.[6]
The organization’s original study found that 32% of sheet metal workers studied between 1986 and 1990 had been diagnosed with symptoms of occupational lung diseases, and a later study conducted by the group followed over 18,000 sheet metal workers. It found that those who had begun working in the industry before 1949 had the highest risk of asbestos-related diseases. This was attributed to the occupation’s involvement in shipbuilding surrounding World War II. As shipyard exposure dropped and greater protections were put in place, the incidence of asbestos-related diseases declined.[6]
It also found that sheet metal work routinely exposed workers to air that exceeded 20-to-40 fibers per cubic centimeters, an amount that is several hundred times higher than the standard allowed today by OSHA.[6] Another study published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine reported that sheet metal workers are seven times more likely to develop mesothelioma than the general population despite rarely handling asbestos directly.
Companies Whose Products Exposed Sheet Metal Workers to Asbestos
Though sheet metal workers who worked with asbestos-containing products were not aware of their dangers, the same cannot be said of the companies that made and sold those products. There is significant evidence that many of these companies knew that asbestos had been linked to cancer and other diseases, and chose to hide the information to continue earning profits. Their decisions cost countless sheet metal workers and others their health and their lives. Today those who are diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases may be eligible to take legal action against the companies responsible.
Some of these companies include:
- Alcoa Corporation
- Aspromet Company
- Babcock & Wilcox
- Bath Iron Works
- Bethlehem Steel Corporation
- Celotex Corporation
- CertainTeed Corporation
- Combustion Engineering
- Duro Dyne Corporation
- Eagle Picher Industries
- Flintkote Company
- Foseco
- Garlock Sealing Technologies
- Guard-Line, Inc.
- Halliburton
- Harvey Aluminum, Inc.
- H.H. Richardson Company
- Johns Manville
- Kaiser Aluminum
- Metalclad Insulation Corporation
- Owens-Illinois, Inc.
- Richmond Fireproof Door Company
- Steel Grip
- U.S. Steel Corporation
- Wallace-Murray Corporation
- W.R. Grace & Co.
Lawsuits Filed by Sheet Metal Workers Affected by Asbestos
Since the public became aware of the dangers of asbestos and of asbestos companies’ negligence in failing to protect or warn those exposed to the product, tens of thousands of victims diagnosed with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases have taken legal action against those responsible. Some notable lawsuits include:
- After sheet metal worker Henry Tragarz died of malignant pleural mesothelioma, his widow filed an asbestos lawsuit against several companies that had exposed him to their asbestos-contaminated products. The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.[7]
- Charles Sparks was a Navy veteran who was sent for training as a metal worker during his time of service and who later pursued a career as a sheet metal worker. After he was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, he filed suit against the companies whose products exposed him to asbestos. The jury found the asbestos companies 100% responsible for his illness.[8]
- After her sheet metal worker’s husband’s death from cancer, Arlene Maiorana filed suit against several asbestos companies, accusing the products they made of exposing him to the product that caused his illness. The jury found that the products were a significant factor in his death and awarded the widow $4.5 million.[9]
Help for Sheet Metal Workers Diagnosed With Asbestos-related Diseases
If you are a sheet metal worker who has been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease like mesothelioma or asbestos-related lung cancer, or if you have lost a loved one who was a sheet metal worker to one of these diseases, there is help available. An asbestos lawyer who specializes in helping those exposed to the toxic material can provide you with the resources and guidance you need to pursue the best option for your situation. This may mean filing claims against the asbestos trust funds set up on behalf of victims by those asbestos companies that filed for bankruptcy or it may mean filing a personal injury lawsuit seeking compensation for the damages you’ve suffered.
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