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How Can a Teacher Get Mesothelioma by Occupational Exposure to Asbestos?
When most people think of asbestos, they think about possible exposure happening through construction or mesothelioma work. However, professionals like teachers and hospital workers who work in buildings that were built before asbestos regulations banned most uses of asbestos are also at risk.
Asbestos was used in various construction materials to make them more durable. Asbestos is lightweight, affordable and versatile, so it was used in everything from floor tiles to roofing materials and everything in between. It was also commonly used as fireproofing in schools and other buildings.
While asbestos is believed to be generally safe when it is undisturbed, if it is disturbed, microscopic asbestos fibers can become airborne and breathed in by those nearby, eventually causing cancerous cell mutation. Mesothelioma has a long latency period, up to 50 years. Asbestos is disturbed when repair, sanding or removal work is completed on or near it. Once asbestos is disturbed, it breaks apart and can easily become airborne. Therefore, people like teachers who spend a lot of time in older buildings while it is being repaired or renovated may inhale large amounts of asbestos fibers. If these fibers get caught in the protective lining of their lungs, heart or abdomen, this can eventually result in the development of mesothelioma.
Although the Environmental Protection Agency attempted to ban asbestos completely, this attempt was ultimately rejected by the courts. However, most companies removed asbestos from their products during the 1980s once its dangers became well known. Federal law does not require schools to remove asbestos if administrators discover it. However, schools are required to develop plans to inspect their schools for these materials and prepare management plans that prevent and reduce asbestos hazards.
Common job duties of teachers include:
- Developing curriculum
- Teaching students
- Attending meetings
- Cleaning and maintaining the classroom
- Completing ongoing education
- Decorating classrooms
Locations in the United States for the Highest Employment Rates for Teachers
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently 1,072,500 high school teachers, 615,700 middle school teachers and 1,569,000 kindergarten and elementary school teachers currently employed in the United States.
States with the highest employment rates for teachers include:
- California
- Texas
- New York
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
Similar Occupations as Teachers
Similar occupations as teachers include:
- Adult literacy and high school equivalency diploma teachers
- Career and technical education teachers
- Early childhood development teachers
- Postsecondary teachers
- Preschool teachers
- Principals
- School and career counselors
- Special education teachers
- Teacher assistants
Lawsuits and Settlements Involving Teachers and Mesothelioma
A 51-year old former elementary school teacher in Philadelphia who had worked in this profession for nearly 30 years developed mesothelioma after working in a 90-year-old school building. The heating pipes that went across her classroom were insulated with asbestos materials. Every year, the teacher would hang her students’ work from a clothesline attached to these pipes, which was believed to be responsible for her asbestos exposure. She sued the school district, alleging that the school failed to warn her about asbestos or remediate it in a responsible manner.
A federal lawsuit was filed in Detroit alleging that Dearborn Heights School covered up asbestos contamination in two of its schools.
A number of schools have been found to have asbestos and not to have complied with recommendations. In Chicago, only 11 of 184 surveyed elementary, middle and high schools complied with recommendations. An investigation found 10.7 million asbestos fibers in one sixth grade classroom in Philadelphia after a building engineer stripped insulation from a steam pipe. The Manhattan Beach Unified School District was cited with 27 violations for negligent renovations that could have put teachers and students at risk. Teachers who develop mesothelioma under these conditions may have a mesothelioma claim.
Studies Related to Asbestos in Schools
In the study “Pleural mesothelioma in a school teacher: asbestos exposure due to DAS paste,” researchers concluded that DAS paste was a sure asbestos exposure and that mesothelioma cases can occur after cumulative low, occupational exposure, even only to chrysotile asbestos. Other research has shown that children are more vulnerable to asbestos exposure than adults, so students may be at a greater risk of developing mesothelioma than teachers.
Types of Asbestos Products Used by Teachers
Teachers may have come into contact with asbestos-containing products, such as:
- Plaster
- Popcorn ceiling textural coating
- Ceiling tiles
- Boiler insulation
- Pipe wrap insulation
- Duct work for heating and cooling systems
- Wallboard
- Paints and coatings
- Air duct insulation
- Vinyl flooring
- Vinyl backing and glue
- Cement sheets
- Classroom cork boards
Manufacturers of Products Used by Teachers
Teachers may have been exposed to asbestos from products made by the following manufacturers:
- P. Green Industries
- Baldwin-Ehret-Hill
- Federal Mogul Corporation
- Fibreboard Corp.
- Fisher Scientific Company
- Flintkote
- Forty-Eight Insulations
- GAF-Ruberoid
- General Refractories Company
- Georgia Pacific Corporation
- Hamilton Materials, Inc.
- Johns-Manville
- Kaiser Gypsum Company, Inc.
- Kelly-Moore Paint Company
- H. Detrick Company
- Montello, Inc.
- National Gypsum Company
- Owens Corning
- Owens-Illinois
- Philip Carey Company
- Plibrico Company
- Sherwin-Williams Paint Company
- Synkoloid Company
- Union Carbide Corporation
- S. Gypsum Company
- R. Grace & Co.
- Zurn Industries, Inc.
