Finding of Emergency Section 5204 , Occupational Exposures to Respirable Crystalline Silica Business Meeting : December 14 , 2023 Page 14 of 36
In addition , section 5204 contains three loopholes that limit its effectiveness :
• Feasibility : section 5204 allows employers to avoid implementing key protections in the standard by claiming that those protections are infeasible [ see subsections ( f )( 1 ), ( h )( 1 )( A ), ( h )( 1 )( B ), ( h )( 1 )( C ), ( i )( 1 ) and ( i )( 2 )( B )].
• Objective data : section 5204 allows employers to exempt themselves from the standard in its entirety by claiming that RCS exposures are likely below the AL , without actually having to conduct exposure monitoring [ see subsection ( a )( 2 )].
• Monitoring : section 5204 allows employers to conduct air monitoring on a single day and exempt themselves from the standard for that task , from that point onward , if the results show exposures are below the AL [ see subsection ( d )( 3 )( B )].
14 ) On the current trajectory , many workers in this industry will develop silicosis and die .
To support a new Cal / OSHA SEP in 2023 , the CDPH OHB identified all artificial stone fabrication shops in the state ; within this dataset , Cal / OSHA confirmed the identity of 808 shops . Assuming that a median of five workers are employed in each of these 808 shops , and assuming that the prevalence rate for silicosis among these workers is 12 % to 21 %, and that the silicosis fatality rate among these cases is 19 %, Cal / OSHA estimates that :
• About 4,040 workers are employed in California ’ s stone fabrication shops . 47
• About 500 to 850 cases of silicosis will likely occur among these 4,040 workers . 48
• About 90 to 160 of these workers will likely die of silicosis . 49
Based on the experience of the 2019 SEP , Cal / OSHA expects that hundreds of shops are likely out of compliance with the title 8 standards . Applying the 2019 SEP findings to the 808 shops and 4,040 workers in the industry shows that :
• 600 shops ( 72 %) are likely in violation of the silica standard . 50
47
808 sites * 5 workers / site = 4,040 workers . An analysis of NAICS codes shows that the number of employees could range as high as 9,663 if 46 large shops are included that employ an average of 127 workers . It ’ s unclear how many of these workers would be exposed to RCS , versus the number in management and clerical positions . Further analysis of employment patterns in this industry is needed .
48
A 12-21 % silicosis prevalence rate = 485 to 848 workers with silicosis from a population of 4,040 ~ 500 to 850 with rounding .
49
A 19 % fatality rate for 485 to 848 workers = 92 to 161 silicosis deaths ~ 90 to 160 with rounding .
50
0.72 * 808 workplaces = 582 workplaces ~ 600 with rounding .