C. L. Hite to H. M. Jackson on the Waukegan Plant Medical Department (1969)

A two-page memo of June 6, 1969, from C. L. Hite at J-M's Waukegan, Illinois, plant to H. M. Jackson, manager of J-M's industrial health program, describing the plant's medical department ahead of a review by an outside firm, Health Services, Inc. The department had been built in the mid-1930s, and "the medical facilities themselves and the available floor space is the same today as it was in 1935." Waukegan employed about 1,600 hourly and 430 salaried workers; the department did 45 to 50 periodic and 40 to 45 pre-employment examinations a week, and Dr. T. H. Davison, the chief medical officer, saw another 175 to 200 workers a week for treatment and other visits.

What it shows

Workers with an X-ray reading of "P-3" or worse were to be examined every 12 months and others every 19 to 24 months, but "at the present time, we are doing routine physical examinations once every 28 months." The X-ray unit was about 25 years old. Waukegan had a long record of asbestosis among its workers (Dr. Vorwald on 64 cases in 1951), and in 1963 Dr. Davison had complained that workers found to have lung changes had not been told or moved (Davison to Dr. Smith, 1963). Six years later the plant's examinations were running behind its own schedule, with the same rooms and an aging X-ray machine.

In Johns-Manville's chronology

Johns-Manville's own chronology of what the company knew describes this document as follows:

C.L. Hite memorandum to Jackson, 6/6/69, discusses the Waukegan plant medical program. The medical department was built in the mid-1930's. There is evidence that physical exams were conducted on hourly workers in 1934 and 1935. The medical facilities and available floor space are the same today as in 1935.

On an annual average, 1,600 hourly workers and 430 salaried workers are employed at the Waukegan location. Presently, 45 to 50 periodic exams are conducted each week in the medical department; 40 to 45 pre-employment physical exams are conducted each week and additionally, Dr. Davison sees 175 to 200 workers each week for treatments, consultations, personal illnesses, etc. Workers who have a P3 X-ray reading or worse are examined every 12 months. All other routine physical exams are to be performed every 19 to 24 months, but presently are performed once every 28 months. The X-ray unit is approximately 25 years old.

Related documents

• J. P. Kottcamp to S. A. Williams on Waukegan Dust Cases and X-Rays (1934)
• Waukegan Workers' Suits Against Johns-Manville in Illinois (1934)
• Arthur J. Vorwald to J. P. Woodard on Asbestosis at the Waukegan Plant (1951)
• Dr. Kenneth W. Smith to Dr. T. H. Davison on Reading X-Rays for Compensation Liability (1963)
• Dr. T. H. Davison to Dr. Kenneth W. Smith on Untold Waukegan Red Slip Cases (1963)
• R. C. Smith's Confidential Memo on Waukegan Red Slip and Pink Slip Pneumoconiosis Cases (1963)