Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today

Occupational Health

Evidence mounts on cancer risk to workers

by Nic Paton 9 Sep 2014
by Nic Paton 9 Sep 2014

Pilots, outdoor workers and workers on construction sites are being warned that they need to take extra care to protect themselves from skin cancer, as figures from Public Health England (PHE) show that hospital admissions for skin cancer have risen steeply over a five-year period.

The figures from PHE show that there was a 41% rise in admissions in the five-year period from 87,685 in 2007 to 123,808 in 2011, with a 30% increase in hospital admissions for melanoma.

But, it cautioned, this was partly a result of new guidance being issued to family doctors on treatment.

At the same time, a joint study by PHE, the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) and the Civil Aviation Authority has suggested the amount of UV-A ultraviolet light entering a cockpit during a two-hour flight from Gatwick to Malaga last year was two to 10 times higher than the level recommended for a flight lasting eight hours, and 50 times higher than levels on the ground.

The research has, as a result, recommended that pilots should consider wearing sunglasses or sun visors in the cockpit as a matter of course.

The finding echoes an Icelandic study from 2000 that argued pilots were at greater risk of developing skin cancer than the rest of the population.

And, while aircraft windscreens absorb most of the UV light, enough still got through to cause concern, said BALPA.

“We know that pilots have a much greater risk of skin cancer than the general population and those with similar working and travel patterns. Our joint research shows that pilots are being exposed to amounts of sunlight in the cockpit above the recommended safe levels,” BALPA general secretary Jim McAuslan told the Guardian in September.

The research, published in the Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology, sought to measure pilots’ exposure to ultraviolet radiation by taking measurements on an Airbus A321 flight in March 2013.

In a separate development, in the wake of the PHE admissions statistics, the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians has warned that construction workers are at particular risk of developing skin cancer.

General secretary Steve Murphy said: “Construction workers are exposed to the sun on a daily basis. It is vital that workers and employers put in place simple measures to ensure that they do not suffer skin damage which could cause skin cancer later in life.”

And a study by insurer and healthcare provider AXA PPP healthcare has concluded that gaps in employers’ “sun-safe” policies are putting outdoor workers at risk of harmful UV radiation exposure.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

A poll of outdoor workers in the UK found that:

  • over half (56%) were unaware if their own company had a policy on sun protection;
  • only one in six (16%) worked for companies that provide free sunscreen;
  • just one in seven (14%) used sunscreen when working outdoors; and
  • nearly half (44%) said their employer should be required to provide them and their colleagues who work outdoors with sunscreen.

Dr Steve Iley, AXA PPP’s medical director for health services, said: “Our research demonstrates that employers are not providing outdoor workers with the necessary advice on sun protection despite the Health and Safety Executive’s warning that UV radiation should be considered an occupational hazard for people who work outdoors.”

Nic Paton

Nic Paton is consultant editor at Personnel Today. One of the country's foremost workplace health journalists, Nic has written for Personnel Today and Occupational Health & Wellbeing since 2001, and edited the magazine from 2018.

previous post
Labour government would scrap “unfair” employment tribunal system
next post
“NHS should put stressed workers on the fast track”

You may also like

Uncertainty over law hampering legal use of medical...

20 May 2025

Employers ‘worryingly’ ignorant about stress risk assessments

20 May 2025

Awareness weeks fuel spike in demand for mental...

19 May 2025

Healthcare workers prioritise mental health support in new...

12 May 2025

Two-thirds of school leaders suffering mental ill health

6 May 2025

‘Healthy work’ about much more than access to...

28 Apr 2025

Tool developed for employers to calculate cost of...

28 Apr 2025

Why employers must do more to support all...

24 Apr 2025

How to help employees quit vaping before new...

22 Apr 2025

NHS urging people to check for cancer warning...

22 Apr 2025

  • Preparing for a new era of workforce planning (webinar) WEBINAR | Employers now face...Read more
  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today