Electricians
The job of an electrician is extremely important. After all, what would we do without electricity? In this day and age when electrical power is taken for granted, it is necessary to have plenty of highly-trained professionals on hand who can deal with the intricacies of electricity, whether it's installing a light fixture in a home kitchen or wiring a New York skyscraper correctly so that workers will never be in the dark.
Electricians come in all shapes and sizes. Many are self-employed and make a living by doing odd jobs in homes or small businesses. Others are employed by multi-million-dollar contractors and are assigned to work on large projects, such as the wiring of major commercial buildings.
Electricians and Asbestos Exposure
The job of electrician can truly be one of the most dangerous available, which is why the job requires lots of specialized training.
Since electrical wires are normally hidden from site, electricians doing installations or making repairs often must crawl through small places to do their job, trying to complete their tasks in places most of us would describe as hard-to-reach.
Such placement of wires often demands that electricians drill holes or saw through wallboard or floor and ceiling tiles in order to do their job properly. Both drilling and sawing create dust, and during the days when drywall and floor and ceiling tiles contained asbestos, this dust was dangerous, especially when released in tight spaces with poor ventilation. The electrician would certainly have inhaled the hazardous particles.
Furthermore, insulation for electrical wiring manufactured before the asbestos warnings of the mid-1970s also contained asbestos. The insulation keeps those who touch the wires from receiving electrical shocks and the use of asbestos was the norm because of its excellent fire-resistant properties.
Though these products no longer contain asbestos, electricians often work in old homes or buildings updating electrical systems, so exposure to old asbestos-containing materials is still very much a threat. Such products include:
- Cement Siding
- Cement Wallboard
- Acoustical Plaster
- Decorative Plaster
- Textured Paints
- Ceiling Tiles
- Electrical Cloth
- Electrical Panel Partitions
- Electrical Ducts
- Electric Wiring Insulation
- Thermal Paper Products
- High Temperature Gaskets
- Spackling Compounds
Today's electricians understand that it is necessary to wear protective masks or respirators were working around products that may contain asbestos. However, electricians of days gone by were not so attuned to the mineral's danger, so most did not wear any sort of protective gear. Decades later, cases of asbestos-caused diseases, such as mesothelioma, are on the rise among electricians.
