UK workers dying from incurable lung disease linked to surprising source | UK | News
Silicosis is triggered by dust (Image: Getty)
Workers in the UK are dying from a rapidly progressing and incurable lung disease linked not to coal mines or heavy industry but to trendy kitchen countertops. Doctors and campaigners have warned of a “man-made epidemic” caused by engineered stoneware, which can contain up to 95% crystalline silica, a hugely popular material used in modern kitchens.
When cut or polished, the boards release clouds of microscopic dust that can cause irreparable damage to the lungs and cause fatal silicosis. Unlike the traditional disease, which usually develops after decades of exposure, this new “accelerated” form strikes workers in their 20s, 30s and 40s after only a few years on the job. The growing crisis has been revealed in all its nakedness Sky News The investigation included the testimony of the dying stonemason Marek Marzec, who spent years cutting quartz kitchen countertops in poorly ventilated workshops.
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Speaking from his hospital bed before his death in November 2024, the 48-year-old described conditions in some factories as “like being in a hurricane”.
He said: “We just had masks and no removers. You couldn’t see anything a meter away from you.”
Mr Marzec, who moved to England hoping to make a better life for his family, said the job left him “unable to breathe and in terrible pain”.
“I can’t tell you how angry I am that I was allowed to work under these conditions and that my life was ruined just because I was doing my job,” he said.
Engineered stone has become one of the most sought-after materials in the home renovation boom because it is cheaper and smoother than natural marble or granite. But experts warn that its extraordinarily high silica content makes it much more dangerous if safety rules are ignored.
Lungs affected by silicosis (Image: Getty)
Workers described using handheld saws to dry-cut slabs in cramped workshops with little ventilation and inadequate extraction systems, filling the air with thick white dust.
Dr., a pulmonologist who treated the affected workers. Jo Feary said the scale of the problem was extremely worrying.
He warned: “We are seeing young men in their 20s and 30s with a disease that we see in miners in their 70s. This is a completely preventable, man-made epidemic.”
Another worker, Wessam, died aged just 28 after his condition rapidly deteriorated and he became too ill to receive a lung transplant. His medical notes stated: “In hospital his condition deteriorated and he died… He was so ill that he was not suitable for transplantation.”
Campaigners say the deaths were entirely preventable because the risks from silica dust have been known for centuries and can be controlled through wet cutting, ventilation and appropriate extraction systems.
Australia banned engineered stones last year due to health concerns, but critics say UK regulators have been too slow to respond.
While the UK already has strict workplace laws regulating silica exposure under COSHH regulations, campaigners say enforcement has failed in smaller “cowboy” workshops operating out of sight.
Ian Lavery, Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Health and Safety at Work, said: “No more lives should be disrupted by dust that we have known how to control for centuries. This is a quiet, ongoing tragedy.”
Mr Marzec issued a final warning before his death, saying: “It is time for urgent action to stop these dangerous working conditions before other stone workers catch this terrible disease and die. I’m sure more people will get sick.”
Express.co.uk has contacted the Health and Safety Executive for comment.
