Roland P. Gagnon of Lake Asbestos to Raybestos-Manhattan on Warning Employees and Customers (1978)

A three-page letter of June 19, 1978, from Roland P. Gagnon, vice president of sales of Lake Asbestos of Quebec, Ltd., a fiber supplier, to the plant manager of Raybestos-Manhattan in Manheim, Pennsylvania. Gagnon wrote that "if the industry is to survive and prosper, asbestos-associated disease must be eliminated" among exposed workers, and summarized the risks of asbestosis, lung cancer, mesothelioma and gastrointestinal cancer. Lake was putting a larger warning label on its fiber bags and sent a booklet for every employee, which it expected Raybestos-Manhattan to distribute and see that it was read.

What it shows

The new bag label read in part: "Asbestosis, Lung Cancer and Other Fatal Diseases May Be Caused By Inhalation of Asbestos" and "Smoking Greatly Increases Lung Cancer Risk." Gagnon noted that mesothelioma "has been observed in individuals exposed to low and to no known concentration of asbestos fiber." He told Raybestos-Manhattan it "should consider it your obligation to inform persons who purchase your products" of the dangers, since its customers' employees could be exposed too. By 1978 the fiber supplier was pressing a manufacturer to warn users of finished products. The booklet is Motley #224.

In Johns-Manville's index

Johns-Manville's legal department indexed the Motley 1,000 in 1984. Its index describes this document as follows:

Roland P. Gagnon (VP Sales, Lake Asbestos) letter to Plant Manager (R-M, Manheim, PA), 6/19/78, stating the it has been and continues to be the policy of Lake Asbestos to encourage and promote the safe use of its asbestos fibre. Gagnon encourages R-M to protect its employees and customers against the dangers of asbestos exposure and states that "if industry is to survive and prosper, asbestos-associated disease must be eliminated." Gagnon lists means by which the above can be accomplished. Much of the discussion in the letter concerns labelling and the distribution of health booklets. Gagnon attaches a booklet prepared by Lake Asbestos for its employees which outlines the potential health hazards associated with asbestos and the precautions which should be taken.

Duplicate of Motley Document #223, except that #865 is addressed to Marcus N. Brooks (R-M).

Related documents

• Lake Asbestos Booklet, Asbestos: How to Work With It and Protect Your Health, Cover Pages (1978)

About this copy

These are documents 223 and 865 of the Motley 1,000, from the set the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust's records facility certified as true copies, pages CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001314 to CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001316.