Irritant contact dermatitis in warehouse employees.

A detailed survey of skin complaints amongst 114 airline employees working in a new warehouse revealed 26 cases of skin problems which originated during the 2 1/2 year operation. A clinical survey of broadly the same population confirmed 14 cases from 98 employees as chronic irritant contact dermatitis of the hands. The work involved the reception, unpackaging, inspection, repackaging and dispatch of aircraft parts. The source of the skin irritation was not to be found in the work itself. Rather, the presence among the employees of two severe cases of non-occupational eczema, combined with the idea that incoming aircraft parts from foreign countries might be 'dirty' in some way, had caused a heightened perception of a risk of skin disease, and the frequency of hand washing had increased as a result. Over-frequent hand washing in a few employees had resulted in precisely what the warehouse staff had been trying to avoid.

Pre-employment colour vision testing.

Male candidates (1020) for employment in occupations that required discrimination of colour were subjected to the Ishihara test and two trade tests of colour perception, the Giles Archer Lantern test and the Electricity Supply Industry (ESI) wire test. One hundred candidates failed the Ishihara test, 61 of the 100 passed both trade tests; 16 of the 100 passed the wire test alone and 7 of the 100 passed the lantern test alone but only 16 failed all 3 tests. Seventy-seven of the 84 who passed some part of their colour perception assessment were offered employment appropriate to their colour vision ability. Eleven of the 16 who passed the wire test alone and 3 of the 6 who passed the lantern test alone successfully entered employment. The Ishihara test, whilst being a useful screening test, is not sufficient on its own as a test of suitability for employment; one or more trade tests should be administered before rejecting candidates who fail it.