Construction workers are one of the highest at-risk groups in terms of exposure to asbestos. All buildings constructed between the early 1920s and the late 1980s are presumed to harbor asbestos and products that contain asbestos in walls, floors, ceilings, insulation, pipes, HVAC, boiler rooms and more. It is estimated that more than 1 million construction workers are exposed every year to materials that contain asbestos.
Absent proper asbestos abatement protections, construction workers came into contact with asbestos during original construction and subsequent maintenance, remodeling or demolition of these buildings. Workers unknowingly also placed family members in danger by exposing them to asbestos fibers that were carried home on work clothes or on a worker’s body.
Exposure to even a fractional amount of asbestos — during construction, repairs, demolition, alteration or maintenance — can result in serious health problems, including the risk of developing asbestosis, mesothelioma, lung cancer or other related cancers.
