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In Finland, the ASA Registry (ASA-rekisteri) is required by law to record workers exposed to carcinogens or carcinogenic work processes. The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (Työterveyslaitos) then compiles annual statistics.
Since 2022, it has recorded a steady increase in the number of people reporting exposure to these risks: in 2024, 66,700 exposed employees were recorded, representing an increase of approximately 8.5% compared to the previous year.
It should be noted that in 2024, approximately 3,300 workplaces submitted ASA reports, about 200 more than the previous year. Furthermore, the most frequently reported exposure risks were reported at a higher rate than the previous year.
40% of reports due to exposure to quartz dust
In 2024, 26,200 workers exposed to quartz dust were recorded by the ASA, representing approximately 40% of the year’s exposure reports. This exposure is particularly common in the construction sector. The main exposures reported by workers are as follows:
- Quartz dust (26,200 exposed workers);
- Diesel engine exhaust (10,000);
- Stainless steel welding fumes (8,300);
- Hardwood dust (8,100);
- Combustion byproducts (6,900);
- Nickel and its inorganic compounds (6,100);
- Used combustion engine oils (5,500);
- Asbestos (4,700);
- Formaldehyde (4,600).
The workers most frequently mentioned in exposure reports, across all substances, are agricultural and industrial machinery technicians and repairers (approximately 4,200 people), who are frequently exposed to multiple substances simultaneously. They are followed by firefighters and emergency responders (3,800 people recorded in 2024, 700 more than the previous year) and construction workers, with 3,700 reports.
