Dr. Kenneth W. Smith, Industrial Hygiene Survey of 708 Canadian Johns-Manville Mill Workers (1949)

A five-page report, "Industrial Hygiene: Survey of Men in Dusty Areas," reviewing the examinations and X-rays of 708 men in the mill and bag sorting and cleaning departments at Canadian Johns-Manville's operations in Asbestos, Quebec. Its stated purposes included protecting the men's health and preventing claims, and "to inform the Company of the possible number of compensation claim cases which could be submitted in the future." Only 4 men had normal X-rays; 475 showed early fibrosis, 52 advanced fibrosis (a "Pre-Asbestotic Group"), and 7 early asbestosis. The report concludes that lung fibrosis rose in direct proportion to years in the dust.

What it shows

The seven men with asbestosis were still working. "They have not been told of this diagnosis," the report says, because "as long as the man feels well" and is content, "nothing should be said"; when he became disabled, "the diagnosis should be made and the claim submitted by the Company." It treats the 59 men in the two worst groups as probable compensation claims and recommends transfers to non-dusty work "before there is a possibility of a claim being accepted." Because the 475 men with early changes were too many to move, it calls for every effort to reduce dust, warning that if left in the dust they would all "show progressive fibrosis." In November 1948 Smith had told a J-M plant manager that only two asbestosis cases had been accepted for compensation at Asbestos (Smith to W. A. Young).

About this copy

The same survey is also filed, in a different copy, with A. R. Fisher's letter of February 3, 1949, which sent it to Vandiver Brown and J. P. Woodard.

In Johns-Manville's chronology

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

K.W. Smith Report re: health of 708 J-M Canadian Mill Workers. Stated purposes include estimation of future workers compensation claims. Notes x-ray changes, defines radiological classifications, finds some disease; declines to advise 7 asymptomatic workers of illness; predicts progression of some individuals toward workers compensation claims; recommends reassignments of some, dust control efforts to protect others too numerous to transfer ("pre-asbestotic"; p-2's). "As would be expected, very few of the men exposed to dust had negative i.e., completely normal, X-ray readings."