The most authoritative international and national organisations (ICNIRP, ILO, WHO, Istituto Superiore di Sanità) in charge of health and safety protection as well as many international epidemiological studies agree in considering the solar ultraviolet radiation an occupational risk for all the outdoor workers listed - as a rough guide - in Tables 1 and 2. This risk shall be assessed and prevented in the same way as all other risks (such as chemical, physical, biological risks) present in the working environment. In particular, several photoinduced pathologies, whose target organs are skin and eyes, have been defined and characterized for these workers since a lot of time. Without any doubt, skin cancer is the most frequent of them.
Tab. 1a List of the activities that can involve a high risk of exposure to solar UV radiation
Agricultural and forestry work activities |
Flower growing - Gardening |
Pool attendants |
Outdoor sport instructors |
Road, railway and ship building and construction |
Work activities in open-cast quarries and mines |
Fishery and working activities on boats, moorings, dock working activities |
Personnel involved in research and storage activities of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons in ground, sea and in the oil platforms |
Tab. 1a List of the activities that can involve a risk of exposure to solar UV radiation
Parking attendants |
Garbage collectors |
Outdoor or square working personnel |
Outdoor electric and hydraulic line maintenance |
Refuelling: road and airport |
Postman/ shipment delivery |
Local police /Security forces / Army |
Pool maintenance |