Dr. T. H. Davison to Dr. Kenneth W. Smith on Untold Waukegan Red Slip Cases (1963)

A one-page confidential memo of January 31, 1963, from Dr. T. H. Davison, the Waukegan plant physician, to Dr. Kenneth W. Smith, J-M's medical director, copied to R. C. Smith. Davison wrote that a backlog had built up in "placing 'Red Slip' cases on dust free jobs and approval for me to notify these employees of their condition": 24 cases, most diagnosed during Kenneth Smith's own visits in July and August 1962. He was concerned that many of the men would come up for their next annual examination "and yet not advised of the findings from the previous examination."

What it shows

Davison also reported that the Industrial Insulations Division held a list of 19 employees Kenneth Smith had marked as possible cases on a special survey the year before, with "no red slips initiated, and no notations in the X-Ray or clinical records." Reviewing the films, Davison found two clear cases of pneumoconiosis and started red slips on them. He asked Smith to confirm his "assumption" that the special list "was a projection of the department's potential liability since no entries were made in the employee records." The memo is the doctor's account of the backlog described in R. C. Smith's memo of January 28, 1963, and Kenneth Smith answered it on February 14, 1963.

In Johns-Manville's chronology

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

Dr. T.H. Davison (Waukegan) wrote a memorandum to Dr. K.W. Smith, dated 1/31/63, regarding "Red Slip Cases." Dr. Davison reminds Dr. Smith that there has been a delay at Waukegan in placing "Red Slip" cases on dust free jobs and in notifying them of their condition. There are 24 such cases, the majority of which were diagnosed during Dr. Smith's July and August visits. Dr. Davison is concerned that soon many of these employees will be coming up for their next annual exam and still haven't been notified of findings from their previous exam.

Bob Smith has prepared a list of these cases and presented it to the Plant Managers with the intention that these employees would be placed and notified by Dr. Davison at least by the time of their next annual exam. While reviewing these cases, Gene Greene determined that the Industrial Insulations Division had a list of 19 employees designated as "M" by Dr. Smith while on a special survey last year. No red slips have been initiated on any of these cases.

Dr. Davison reviewed these cases to determine the number of cases which need to be notified. Dr. Davison determined that 2 cases were "diagnostically pneumoconiosis" and initiated formal red slips on these. The majority of the other cases were P3. Dr. Davison assumes that this list of 19 cases was prepared as "a projection of the department's potential liability since no entries were made in the employee records." IH-54 procedures are being carried forward on these 19 cases. Dr. Davison asks Dr. Smith to verify the status of these workers.

Related documents

• R. C. Smith's Confidential Memo on Waukegan Red Slip and Pink Slip Pneumoconiosis Cases (1963)