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Flight attendant uniforms Across industries, the most talked about factors to consider when
selecting an employee uniform are comfort, durability, fabric care
instructions, and style. Within aviation, flammability is also important. For
flight attendants, until 2011, the primary uniform-related health issue
reported to AFA-CWA was the need for airlines to offer a non-wool uniform
option to the small number of crews who have a wool allergy. Starting in early
2011, though, hundreds of AFA-CWA members at Alaska Airlines reported symptoms
caused by exposure to chemical contaminants in employee uniform fabrics
manufactured by TwinHill (a subsidiary of Men’s Wearhouse). From 2016-2020, AFA
received a similar pattern of reports from our members at PSA, Piedmont, and
Envoy Air. And in 2018, we started to receive uniform reaction reports from
Delta Airlines flight attendants. A short summary of
these outbreaks is provided here. These reports have led AFA-CWA to
research the literature regarding chemical contaminants in fabrics sold in the
US, the chemical additives in these uniform fabrics, and recommendations
for uniform garment selection to prevent these types of outbreaks in the
first place. In 2018,
researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health published their study into the
symptoms reported by Alaska Airlines flight attendants before, during, and
after the new uniforms. They formally recognized “a relationship between health
complaints and the introduction of new uniforms.” And there are other examples of chemical-contaminated uniform clothing
generating reaction reports amongst flight attendants, ambulance employees, and TSA officers. This webpage is intended to provide
basic information to our flight attendant members who are experiencing
uniform-related symptoms and are seeking information to bring to their doctors.
Some of the information is airline-specific, but the lessons learned from our
research into fabric contaminants and reported symptoms apply system-wide. Thus,
beyond trying to serve the needs of individual members with relevant
information, we provide recommendations for union representatives and airline
management to facilitate the selection of safe fabrics and establish a means
for crewmembers to report any problems, especially during the early months of a
new uniform “roll out.” The goal is to prevent, or at least quickly identify
and remedy, uniform-related ill health. Comfort, durability, fabric care, and
style all matter, but health and safety must be number one. July 3,
2023 – Are your clothes making you sick? The opaque world of chemicals in
fashion Nov. 2012
-- Bigger picture on toxins in clothes: Greenpeace International
commissioned an investigation that delves even further into the hazardous
chemicals used in the production of high street fashion. You can read the Greenpeace report “Toxic threads: The big fashion stitch up” and a related op ed article. Regarding arsenic, lead, and chromium in
fabrics: Significantly,
heavy metals fabric data commissioned by Alaska Airlines and completed in Aug.
2012 reported that 13 of 35 fabric samples appeared to have excess levels of
arsenic and lead, 6 of 35 samples appeared to have excess levels of chromium
(not hexavalent), and one had excess hexavalent chromium, all as compared to
the Oeko-Tex 100 fabric standard. AFA-CWA has not been provided with the
names of the arsenic, lead, and chromium-containing compounds in these fabrics,
but these test data confirm their presence. 1.
Arsenic-containing
compounds that may be used in fabrics include: arsenic trioxide, arsenic trisulfide,
arsenic pentoxide, potassium arsenate, and sodium arsenate. 2.
Lead-containing
compounds that may be used in fabrics include: lead acetate and lead pigments. 3.
Chromium-containing
compounds that may be used in fabrics include: chromic acetate, chromic fluoride,
chromic chloride, chromic oxide, chromic trioxide, chromic sulfate, chromo
sulfuric acid. July 2013: “Information on chemical
content of TwinHill uniforms” - Summary of chemicals identified in TwinHill
uniform garments in circulation at Alaska Airlines, including tributyl phosphate,
orange dye 37/76, diisodecyl maleate, 2-ethylhexyl fumarate, arsenic (see list
above), chromium (see list above), lead (see list above), cobalt, and antimony. Links to
abstracts/articles of interest: Metal content in textile and
nano-textile products (2022) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35055766/ Symptoms related to new flight attendant
uniforms (2018) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29295715/ Substitution of PFAS chemistry in
outdoor apparel and the impact on repellency performance (2017) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28460297/ Detection of azo dyes and aromatic
amines in women undergarments (2016) https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27149414/
Toxicity appraisal of untreated dyeing
industry wastewater based on chemical characterization and short term bioassays
(2016) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26920697/
Patch testing to a textile dye mix by the
international contact dermatitis research group (2015) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26172486/
Patch testing with a textile dye mix in two
concentrations - a multicentre study by the Swedish contact dermatitis research
group (2015) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25166030/
Case report: poisoning with lead, mercury,
arsenic caused hair loss, rash, gastrointestinal, neuropathy, weakness (2013) -
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23582936/
Case report: metal sensitivity caused systemic
dermatitis and hair loss (2013) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23590797/
Contact allergy from disperse dyes in
textiles: a review (2013) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23289879/ Patch testing with contact allergens:
the Mayo Clinic experience (2012) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23169208/
Immunoregulation of skin sensitization
and regulatory T cells (2012) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22804346/ Assessment of the sensitizing potential
of textile disperse dyes and some of their metabolites by the loose-fit
coculture-based sensitization assay (2012) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22349058/
Allergic contact dermatitis probably
caused by mercaptobenzothiazole in thermal undergarments (2012) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22486572/
Globalisation and allergy (2011) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21546337/
Allergic contact dermatitis from
formaldehyde textile resins (2010) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20233544/
Halogenated flame retardants: Do the
fire safety benefits justify the risks? (2010) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21268442/
Formaldehyde in textiles: GAO 10-875
(2010; not peer-reviewed) - https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-10-875.pdf Association between indoor exposure to
semi‐volatile
organic compounds and building‐related symptoms among the occupants of residential
dwellings (2010) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20028434/ Allergic contact dermatitis to dimethyl
fumarate in footwear (2010) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20136899/ An epidemic of furniture-related
dermatitis: searching for a cause (2010) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19796182/
Contact allergy: Alternatives for the
2007 North American contact dermatitis group (NACDG) standard screening tray
(2008) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18215657/
Contact allergy to textile dyes in
southern Sweden (2006) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16787452/ Diagnosis and treatment of dermatitis
due to formaldehyde resins in clothing (2004) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15842060/
Atypical and unusual clinical
manifestations of contact dermatitis to clothing (textile contact dermatitis):
case presentation and review of the literature (2003) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12952748/ Disperse dyes in fabrics of patients
patch-test-positive to disperse dyes (2003) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14738722/
Occupational contact dermatitis to
textile dyes in airline personnel (2001) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11753894/
Acute hypoallergenicity (1998) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9840282/ Chronic generalized eczema caused by
multiple dye sensitization (1996) – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8955485/
Contact dermatitis in the textile industry: a review of 72 patients
(1996) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8955486/
Textile dye dermatitis (1995) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7896955/
Allergic and irritative textile dermatitis
(1994) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8115841/
Textile dye dermatitis (1992) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1493688/
Contact dermatitis from fabrics (1986) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2943672/
Clothing dermatitis (1986) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3743044/
Toxic effects of metals from the environment on
hair growth and structure (1979) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/227944/
A case for diagnosis (alopecia areata;
arsenical dermatitis?) (1945) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21065672/
Chemicals in fabrics as potential skin
irritants (1941) - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19992434/ |
Print
Download:
yuyhI21.pdf,
HETA20120075.pdf,
AFAtoCPSC.pdf,
AttachCPSC.pdf,
CPSCresp.pdf,
FAAresp.pdf,
SHARP2001.pdf,
chemfab41.pdf,
cobalt.pdf,
cu.pdf,
ddm.pdf,
ehf.pdf,
k2cr.pdf,
mn.pdf,
orange.pdf,
sb.pdf,
tbp.pdf,
chemfabppt.pdf,
as_k.pdf,
as_na.pdf,
as_o3.pdf,
as_o5.pdf,
as_s3.pdf,
cr_sulf.pdf,
cro_ac.pdf,
cro_cl.pdf,
cro_fl.pdf,
cro_sulfa.pdf,
pb_ac.pdf,
pb_pig.pdf,
cro_ox.pdf,
cr_ox.pdf,
cr_tri.pdf,
chemdata2.pdf,
UniBulletin.pdf,
AFAresponse.pdf,
FAuni_Design.pdf,
uni_summaries.htm
