Environmental and Occupational Health THE BERYLLIUM “DOUBLE STANDARD ” STANDARD

Brush Wellman, the world’s leading producer and supplier of beryllium products, has systematically hidden cases of beryllium disease that occurred below the threshold limit value (TLV) and lied about the efficacy of the TLV in published papers, lectures, reports to government agencies, and instruc-tional materials prepared for customers and workers. Hypocritically, Brush Wellman instituted a zero exposure standard for corporate executives while workers and customers were told the 2 microgram standard was “safe. ” Brush intentionally used its workers as “canaries for the plant, ” and referred to them as such. Internal documents and corporate depositions indicate that these actions were intentional and that the motive was money. Despite knowledge of the inadequacy of the TLV, Brush has successfully used it as a defense against lawsuits brought by injured workers and as a sales device to provide reassurance to customers. Brush’s policy has reaped an untold number of victims and resulted in mass distribution of beryllium in consumer products. Such corporate malfeasance is perpetuated by the current market system, which is controlled by an organized oligopoly that creates an incentive for the neglect of worker health and safety in favor of externalizing costs to victimized workers, their families, and society at large. Ignorance is seldom random. Gunnar Myrdal Since 1931, Brush Wellman has grown to become the leading international producer and supplier of beryllium products. During World War II, the manu-facture of beryllium products drastically increased as beryllium powder metal-lurgy was used for defense and aerospace applications. Workers for Brush Wellman began to manifest respiratory disease from beryllium as early as th