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REACH - Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals

REACH came into force in the UK on 1^st June 2007. The main requirements of REACH were from 2008 onwards. A timeline for the implementation of main REACH requirements is attached as an appendix.

Download the policy document which is set out below, pdf (82.8KB)

Unite Policy
The current Unite approach to REACH has developed as a piecemeal response to concerns raised by manufacturers and employers in separate sectors – principally chemicals, and more recently metals. Unite recognizes however, that REACH could have implications for all sectors of the UK economy, and could therefore affect many Unite members. Industries involved and impacted upon are far-reaching, including the chemical industry, car manufacturers, packaging manufacturers, inorganic materials and products manufacturers, such as steel, non-ferrous metals, paper and cement and the electronics sector.

In responding to REACH, the primary concern of Unite will be for the health and safety of people at work.

In its development REACH has undoubtedly been a piece of environmental legislation, with workplace effects of chemicals being a secondary consideration. Although one of the changes to REACH has been to acknowledge the need to protect the health of workers, Unite remains concerned that the full implementation of REACH could undermine the existing UK approach to the control of chemicals at work.

Unite is also keen to ensure that the implementation of REACH does not lead to job losses, or to manufacturers removing their operations to sites outside the EU. If existing UK operations follow this path it could involve the export of risks in a way that should be completely unacceptable to both the EU and to those countries, and their workforces, that then have to deal with those risks. However, we remain sceptical about some industry predictions about potential costs and job losses, especially in light of continuing surveys and reviews that indicate the effects of REACH are broadly in line with EU predictions on the costs and benefits.

Therefore, Unite supports the REACH Regulations, providing they do not reduce, or undermine current UK controls on the use of chemicals at work, and providing they do not result in the unacceptable export of chemical risks to countries outside the UK.

In relation to SMEs and niche manufacturers of chemical-based products, Unite believes that the costs of implementation of REACH must be proportionate to the size and profitability of the businesses involved.

Whilst accepting the need for a reasonable level of business confidentiality, Unite will only support confidentiality arguments that do not limit health and safety information provided to users of chemicals in the workplace.

Unite will not support any changes to REACH that reduce the health and safety protection of Unite members in the workplace. Furthermore, Unite is seeking firm assurances and actions from manufacturers, suppliers and employers that they will involve Unite and its members in specific measures in the workplace to protect and improve health and safety information, assessments and controls.

The key elements of the REACH Regulations are:

It has been estimated that one in three of all occupational diseases recognised in Europe every year are caused by exposure to workplace chemicals. In the UK Unite believes that at least 15,000 -18,000 deaths a year are caused by cancers caused by workplace exposure. There are many tens of thousands of people who suffer from skin problems, breathing problems or neurological damage caused by exposure to chemicals.

Before REACH, there were a confusing range of European directives covering the manufacture of chemicals but, not only were they complicated, they did not really work. At present there are many chemicals in use which we know very little about from a safety point of view, this is because, in the past the burden of proof was on the authorities to show that a chemical was unsafe before they could impose any restrictions. In addition different rules applied to new and existing substances, so many chemicals that have been on the market for some time have never been properly tested. At the same time the different rules applying to new and existing chemicals meant that employers were often discouraged from introducing new substances on the market and instead would be more likely to use existing untested chemicals which might actually be more dangerous.

The main themes of REACH are registration, evaluation and authorisation of substances manufactured or imported into the EU.

Chemicals will be registered in 3 phases according to the quantities manufactured or imported. Those chemicals of more than 1,000 tonnes a year, or those of highest concern, have to be registered by 30 November 2010. Substances of between 100 and 1,000 tonnes a year need to be registered by 2013 and all substances of 1 tonne or above must be registered in by the end of November 2018.

Evaluation
Manufacturers and importers also have to develop dossiers, which will then have to be evaluated. There are 2 kinds of evaluation, the first is for substances over 100 tonnes a year where individual countries will be required to examine and agree any testing proposals put forward by industry and also to ensure that the dossiers are complete and compliant. In addition there will be a separate substance evaluation, which allows individual European countries to consider whether industry needs to obtain more information for the chemical safety report.

Authorisation
Industry must also gain EU wide authorisation for the use of any substances that are considered to be of high concern. These include any substances that are identified as carcinogenic or toxic to reproduction. In addition the European Commission can place specific restrictions on substances.

Within the UK the body responsible for enforcing REACH is the Health and Safety Executive. It is their job to ensure compliance with registration, to evaluate substances and to generally enforce the regulations.

What substances will be covered?
REACH is very wide and will cover all substances, whether manufactured or imported, that are either used as an intermediate or sold either on their own or in preparations. Exemptions are substances that are radioactive, subject to custom supervision, or are 'non-isolated intermediates'. Waste is specifically exempt, as is food.

Classifying, and Labelling chemicals
There is also new legislation on the Classification, Labelling and Packaging of chemicals. This is also Europe-wide and follows an international agreement on a global system of classifying chemicals. The Regulations have been introduced in the UK as Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging) for Supply Regulations 2009 (CHIP) and will gradually replace the UK legislation. The Regulations will apply to the classification of substances from 1 December 2010, and to the classification of mixtures (formerly 'preparations') from 1 June 2015.

The union view
The European trade unions, including Unite, have broadly welcomed REACH. They particularly support the reversal of the burden of proof onto industry and the wide coverage. However because of pressure from employers' organisation many of the original proposals for a new chemical framework have been watered down. The new regulations mean that industry will be able to go on using certain extremely dangerous substances even if safer alternatives are available. This is inconsistent with the current legislation on the protection of workers, which insists that employers must substitute any dangerous substances that they cannot eliminate, if a substitute is available. Trade unions have also expressed concern over the reporting of substances below 10 tonnes per year where there will be no requirement on employers to provide information derived from the testing of the substances.

Unions also believe that it is a major omission that most nanomaterials, because of their size, will never be covered by REACH as they are unlikely to be produced in quantities above 1 tonne.

What will it mean in the workplace?
REACH did not replace the existing regulations protecting workers such as COSHH. It is in addition to them. In the long term REACH should mean that there is much more information on the safety of chemicals that are used in the workplace. Rather than simple safety datasheets, information will also be available on the dangers of substances when they are combined with other chemicals or are used for specific purposes. If an employer receives information from a supplier or manufacturer that does not cover their use of the substance then they should notify the supplier. Even for substances where there is no safety data sheet there are still obligations on suppliers to give any information on potential hazards to all users right down the supply chain.

REACH will also hopefully lead to dangers being identified earlier and the more dangerous substances either better controlled, or substituted, although much of this will depend on the activity of unions and safety representatives, and the way the regulations are enforced.

What REACH will not mean
There are a lot of myths around what REACH will and will not do. Unite safety representatives must remember that REACH was primarily introduced as a measure to protect the environment and the public, rather than workers. It is therefore important to recognise that:

What Unite Safety Representatives need to do!
Unite safety representatives need to ensure that, if their company is producing chemicals, they have registered by the appropriate deadline. If your employer uses chemicals, you should check with your employer whether their classification should be changed under the new rules; they are labelled in line with them; all uses are covered by the safety data sheets and, the required risk management measures are implemented.