Clothing Ironers' Exposure to Asbestos

Clothing ironers and pressers are used to iron garments as well as some other textiles. They do this on a padded machine or ironing board. Often, these ironing board covers or paddings used to contain asbestos as it was fireproof and heat resistant. This meant that these professional ironers and pressers were often exposed to asbestos dust. If they were working in an asbestos textile factory, then there was also the additional problem of dust from the other factory operations.

There are a number of different types of clothing ironers and pressers responsible for ironing various different types of clothing and textiles. The hand presser, for example, would use a hand iron to iron delicate textiles and garments. All-round pressers would be employed in smaller laundries to do a variety of different ironing and pressing tasks.

Asbestos in Ironing Board Covers Used By Ironers and Pressers

One place where asbestos was often used was in ironing board covers. These ironing board covers, when whole and undamaged, were not dangerous. But, once the asbestos became exposed and released asbestos dust into the air, then it put the ironers and pressers in danger of contracting Mesothelioma and asbestos-related diseases.

Dangers of Asbestos in Textile Factories

Clothing ironers and pressers were sometimes also employed in textile factories and may also be exposed to additional sources of asbestos dust, such as where asbestos is being used in the textiles and needs to be carded.

Clothing ironers and pressers are used in a variety of different settings from small laundries to textile manufacturing plants. They generally use a padded pressing machine or ironing board to iron out wrinkles from garments and help to shape them. These paddings and ironing board covers often contained asbestos, which when it became frayed and damaged, could release asbestos dust into the air, leading to an increased risk of Mesothelioma in the ironers and pressers.