Workers have a right to safe and healthy working conditions. In this context, the REACH Regulation, laying down rules for marketing and using chemicals in Europe, is undoubtedly one of the most far-reaching legislative reforms of the last 20 years. It enhances European competitiveness while giving improved protection to human health and the environment. Trade unions had a big hand in framing the legislation and remain influential in making it work.
The ETUC, together with the ETUI, continues to work to identify threats to human health such as endocrine disruptors and nanomaterials, for example, and to press for tighter regulation of hazardous materials.