Advanced occupational silicosis has become more common in the past 10 years due to the rising popularity of engineered slabs for new construction and renovation.

Although engineered stone slabs, when undisturbed, appear to pose little danger to the original manufacturers, retailers, or consumers, they pose a tremendous risk to workers who fashion, shape, cut, polish, and install the slabs. The health risks associated with processing engineered stone appear to be significantly higher than those associated with other silica-containing stone, such as granite or marble, because engineered slabs have a higher silica content (often 90 to 95% as respirable crystalline silica, compared to 30 to 50% in granite or quartz) and because the binders themselves may be toxic.

Raphael Metzger, a toxic-tort lawyer based in Long Beach, has filed 17 lawsuits against dozens of countertop manufacturers on behalf of sick workers or survivors of those who died. He filed his most recent complaint April 18 on behalf of Martin Melendez Murillo, who was diagnosed with silicosis in December after cutting, polishing and installing artificial-stone countertops for 20 years. The complaint alleges, as do previous ones, that the plaintiff was sickened by “inherently hazardous products” that generated “toxic airborne dusts and particulates,” about which workers weren’t properly warned.

Because of the large number of defendants, Metzger has asked the Judicial Council of California to assign all his cases to a single judge. A hearing on his motion is set for June 8.

And workplace regulators in California are drafting an emergency rule to address an epidemic of silicosis – a deadly, preventable lung disease – among fabricators of artificial-stone countertops.

In December, Public Health Watch, LAist and Univision revealed what’s believed to be the nation’s biggest cluster of the disease, in the Los Angeles area. And according to a follow up report by Public Health Watch,the news outlets’ stories – and a petition citing them triggered a burst of activity by California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, known as Cal/OSHA.

Since 2019, the California Department of Public Health has identified 69 cases of silicosis among fabrication workers – “likely an underestimate,” the department said in a statement this week.

The men who are falling ill are at the bottom of a chain that includes contractors, kitchen showrooms and home-improvement stores, as well as companies that manufacture the countertops. They work or worked mostly in small, unobtrusive fabrication shops that can move on short notice, making them especially hard to police.

Silicosis is an incurable illness caused by the inhalation of pulverized silica, a common mineral found in the earth’s crust. Artificial-stone countertops, which have become immensely popular with consumers because of their price and versatility, often contain more than 90 percent silica. The mineral is released into the air as a powder when workers cut or grind the slabs.

Cal/OSHA said it is working with the Department of Public Health to develop “a possible emergency regulation to prevent silicosis.” It did not offer details. Any such rule would have to be approved by California’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board.

In a petition to the board, the Western Occupational and Environmental Medical Association (WOEMA), which represents more than 500 physicians and other professionals in five states, argued for an emergency silica standard that would, among other things, prohibit dry-cutting of artificial stone and increase penalties for violations.

The petition says that “this emerging epidemic of advanced silicosis cases is a public health problem of great urgency, because irreversible end-stage lung disease has now been shown to develop in fabrication workers after only a few years of poorly controlled occupational exposure.” Stricken workers, it says, may require lifelong care that can run into millions of dollars when a lung transplant is involved.

Public Health Watch has confirmed 40 silicosis cases among countertop fabricators in Southern California alone, most of them diagnosed in the past two years. All of the victims are Latino men; most are younger than 50.

When the stories were published and aired, Public Health Watch and its partners reported 30 silicosis cases among fabrication workers in Southern California: 25 diagnosed at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in the San Fernando Valley and five diagnosed elsewhere.

Since that time, six more cases have been diagnosed at Olive View, said Dr. Jane Fazio, a pulmonary physician at the hospital. Fazio said she’s learned of five additional cases diagnosed elsewhere – two in Los Angeles, two in San Diego and one in Northern California.

“I expect more,” she said. “I think we’re still at the very tip of the iceberg.”

In a statement Tuesday, Cal/OSHA said it had joined the California Department of Public Health “to identify employers throughout the state who are likely to be engaged in cut stone, artificial stone, and fabrication operations and have employees exposed to this harmful health hazard. As a result, 814 employers were identified and every single one of them have been contacted by Cal/OSHA just this last week.”

The businesses received letters in both English and Spanish, pointing out the dangers of silica and their obligations to protect employees and report the use of a carcinogen. Silica exposure can cause lung cancer as well as silicosis.  

“For employers who do not report their carcinogen use, they will be placed in the top tier for a randomized targeted enforcement inspection,” the agency said. “Our message is clear and simple: comply with our regulations, seek free assistance from our Consultation Services, or possibly face a Cal/OSHA Enforcement inspection.”

Rise in Occupational Silicosis Triggers 17 L.A. Lawsuits and Cal/OSHA Action