NS apologizes for exposing workers to toxic Chromium 6 paint; Arranging compensation
NS CEO Wouter Koolmees apologized to maintenance employees who worked with toxic Chromium 6 paint between 1970 and 2020. NS did not do enough to protect employees from the carcinogenic substances released when refurbishing rains, public health institute RIVM concluded, NOS reports.
The RIVM concluded that NS and its subsidiary NedTrain intended to follow the rules and adequately protect their personnel, but they knew too little about the risks of Chromium 6 to do so sufficiently. Managers sometimes only knew that applying new paint could be hazardous but not that sanding and welding old layers were just as risky.
Protection against the risks of Chromium 6 was possible as early as the 1970s, but NS did not take measures. It also did not consistently check whether staff wore protective equipment like dust masks.
“For a social organization like NS, the results of the study are extremely painful,” Koolmees said on Tuesday. “We apologize for the suffering, uncertainty, and grief caused. In recognition, we have drawn up a scheme for victims, with the support of the trade unions. We hope that they will make use of it.”
Exposure to Chromium 6 can cause a range of illnesses, including various forms of cancer, allergic diseases, chronic lung diseases, and damage to the nasal septum. NS cannot say how many people have been exposed to Chromium 6 because, until eight years ago, the rail company did not structurally keep track of who worked where.
Koolmees acknowledged that employees and former employees who have not fallen ill could also suffer from the uncertainty about whether they will. Therefore, every former employee who has been exposed to Chromium 6 in the past can claim 3,850 from the NS compensation scheme. Those who have become ill can get more, depending on their situation.
Last year, the Public Prosecution Service said it would prosecute NS and the municipality of Tilburg for not protecting people who worked with Chromium 6 there as part of an unemployment project. Koolmees did not want to anticipate the additional legal risks to his company as a result of the RIVM report.
Trade unions’ response:
Trade unions FNV and CNV are saddened by the results of the RIVM report. According to FNV, the report paints a “shocking picture.” CNV called the results a “sad observation.”
“The fact that between 1974 and 2015, not a single labor inspector came up with the idea of taking an in-depth look at NS at exposure to these types of substances is bizarre,” said FNV director Henri Janssen.
CVN said that many employees and former employees are walking around with future illnesses hanging above their heads. “That cannot be reversed. The damage has already been done. The only thing NS can do now is apologize and ensure a generous claim settlement, also for former employees. Fortunately, NS is doing that,” said CNV negotiator Ike Wiersinga. The union says it is satisfied with the compensation.
FNV is less optimistic and calls the compensation regulation “putting the cart before the horse.” FNV director Janssen: “None of this would have been necessary if NS experts had intervened in time. Employees’ uncontrolled exposure to carcinogenic substances is absurd and, moreover, still happens in many other companies,” he said. FNV wants working with carcinogenic substances to become “radically safer.”
