Abstract

Cancer is considered to be the leading cause of work-related deaths in the EU, with an estimated 1 20 000 new cases and about 80 000 deaths per year. It is clear that more can be done to reduce the number of cases of occupational cancer, which is why, on 25 May 2016, EU-OSHA together with five partners signed a covenant committing to a voluntary action scheme to raise awareness of the roadmap for carcinogens 2016–2019. The scheme aims to engage many more organisations, companies and all those concerned in the fight against work-related cancer. EU-OSHA will intensify its efforts to raise awareness of the risks from the exposure to carcinogens at work during its Health Workplaces campaign 2018–2019, which is dedicated to the management of risks from dangerous substances at work. A core task of EU-OSHA is to help share solutions – good practices and initiatives from companies, authorities, labour inspections, trade associations and unions at the national and at the European level. To support the roadmap, EU-OSHA therefore engages with national partners in their activities and provide them with a basic set of tools and instruments to raise awareness of this important topic, including information sheets, case studies, and a database of tools and instruments. EU-OSHA is also committed to organising regular international stock-taking events where best practice examples are presented and progress is discussed from the point of view of all the actors involved in improving prevention. This presentation focuses on a range of activities that help fulfil the common goal of reducing the death toll from exposure to carcinogens to underline the role that every actor can play.