Research agency will survey non-emergency workers in DC 37 and other unions and provide data on health and safety risks

In coming weeks, the federal safety and health research agency NIOSH will be conducting an official health hazard evaluation of non-emergency city employees who work at several locations near Ground Zero.

The survey will be made at the request of DC 37 and other municipal employee unions, who have been working with the New York Committee for Occupational Safety to address issues related to the World Trade Center disaster.

Lee Clarke, head of DC 37's Safety and Health Dept., spelled out the union's concerns for its members in non-emergency titles: "Government environmental testing has indicated that there are no excessive levels of contaminants, but our members have been experiencing health effects such as respiratory problems, eye and throat irritations and rashes since their return to the area," she said.

To prepare for the survey, a team of investigators from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health arrived in New York Jan. 15 for three days of preliminary site visits and meetings with unions and members.

"Everyone has been told to get back to normal, but if people are having real problems, these need to be addressed," said Dr. Sherry Baron, the team's lead investigator. She said NIOSH would use a confidential questionnaire covering physical and emotional effects that will be computer analyzed to identify specific problems. Based on what they find, she said the researchers then "can do further workups on a smaller group."

After consulting with DC 37 and other unions, NIOSH selected several downtown locations that are typical of the area's many non-emergency work sites. The agency plans to survey members at Stuyvesant H.S., Borough of Manhattan Community College, 40 Rector St., 120 Broadway and four lower Manhattan subway stations.

For comparison, workers at similar sites far from Ground Zero will also be surveyed. NIOSH began the evaluation in late January and hopes to report within two months after completing the survey.

"Because these are representative work locations, the results of the NIOSH survey will be applicable to DC 37 members who work throughout the area," said Ms. Clarke. "But full participation is needed. At least 80% of employees at each of the selected locations must complete the questionnaires for the survey to accurately assess what's going on."

Ms. Clarke emphasized that the NIOSH survey is separate and distinct from DC 37's own WTC incident report form, which all affected members should return in the postage-paid envelope (see Public Employee Press, February 2002 issue, pages 11-14).

—Molly Charboneau