Work and health through the ages

Health: a valuable, perhaps the most valuable, asset that people can enjoy. But what exactly is health? For a long time, it was commonly agreed that healthy people, both in private and professional life, were those who showed no signs of any illness. In 1948, the World Health Organization revolutionized the concept of health by adopting the following definition: “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being.” In 1986, the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion went one step further, stating that “good health is a major resource for social, economic and personal development and an important dimension of quality of life.” This changing interpretation of the concept of “health” can also be seen in the history of the chemical and pharmaceutical industry in Basel.

Text by Michael Mildner

Two Geigy associates enjoying their break in front of the factory building, 1951.

Table of contents

From corporate sports to fruit platters

Check-ups and the fight against addiction

Disabled people belong to the company

Published on 29/06/2020

Until the second half of the 19th century, arsenic poisoning, aniline vapors and exploding test tubes were the main dangers faced by workers in the chemical industry. All too often, these accidents caused lasting damage or even death. And the neighbors were not always overjoyed at the emissions from the production plants – so it is not surprising that the 1864 Basel law on medical services and the policing of public health listed the first chemical factories among those industries most damaging to people’s health, banning them from the densely populated districts of the city.

Nevertheless, entrepreneurs worked inten-sively on improving the situation both for their own workers and for the population as a whole. Only a few years later, an external inspector reported that fewer toxic materials were being used and that dangerous reactions were now conducted “in a secure environment.”

During this same period, medical services were also introduced for workers. In 1872, Albert Hugelshofer was recorded as the first works doctor employed by the Gesellschaft für Chemische Industrie Basel, later abbreviated simply to CIBA. Two years later, in 1874, the company Bindschedler und Busch noted in its “Description of Production Methods” that “several times a year, all associates will be examined by a doctor and in particular workers will be required to keep themselves extremely clean, with soap and bathing facilities provided for this purpose.” The functions of the early works doctors, who generally took the post as a secondary appointment, primarily consisted of performing initial examinations and periodic health checks as well as treating patients suffering from illnesses or the effects of accidents.

Healthy eating: Apples, and in particular apple tart, were already in great demand in the CIBA canteen as early as 1945.

From corporate sports to fruit platters

Over the following years, the work conditions in the chemical industry in Basel continued to improve. Both the risk of accidents and the number of hours worked per week were reduced while the lunch break was extended. As a result, associates had more free time available to them – a fact which was conducive to people taking up different types of sport, in particular gymnastics and football which were to become an integral part of corporate life. A number of company sports clubs within the chemical industry came into being in quick succession: Geigy (1920), Sandoz (1921) and CIBA (1925).

Staff canteens and restaurants played an important role with regard to the “right” food. Initially, it was a question of providing the most efficient catering possible for the steadily growing number of associates, with the health dimension only coming to the fore at a somewhat later date. “We have never before known so much about the right diet and a healthy lifestyle,” read a passage in the Sandoz in-house newsletter in 1973. It continued: “When preparing their food, every person should respect the following rules: eat fat and carbohydrates sparingly but plenty of protein, fruit and fresh food.” Yet despite the 365 fruit platters consumed in one summery week in staff restaurant 501, the editors were forced to concede that “there is one dish that 90 percent of customers favor in both summer and winter alike: a breaded veal or pork escalope with spaghetti.”

Screening examinations such as this one at CIBA in the 1950s primarily served to detect early signs of tuberculosis.

Check-ups and the fight against addiction

From the 1940s, preventive campaigns became an important element of healthcare. In 1945, for example, at CIBA, 1200 technical and office workers were given a screening examination; of these, 61 were found to have a tuberculous lung affection requiring treatment. Such screening campaigns, which also served to diagnose other afflictions, were conducted until the 1970s – and with reason when you consider that, as late as 1970, about 5000 people died from pulmonary tuberculosis in the German Federal Republic.

Alcohol, addiction and drug prevention in general were also major concerns. In 1956, Sandoz conducted a large-scale study on smoking with the participation of 99.7 percent of the 3266 associates. The final report begins innocently enough: “Is smoking harmful? Almost everyone secretly fears this to be true.” With 68 percent of regular smokers among male workers, this gentle introduction is understandable; only 32 percent described themselves as non-smokers. The situation among women was the exact opposite: 68 percent were non-smokers while 32 percent smoked on a regular basis. And in those days, smoking met with general understanding: It was recommended that “anyone who enjoys smoking a few cigarettes during the day, a pipe or cheroot after work or a cigar after a festive meal and can stop again whenever they begin to feel any undesirable effects can do so without any great concern. However, anyone who notices that he is addicted to smoking and can’t get by on fewer than 12 to 15 cigarettes or three cheroots a day is strongly advised to stop.” A few more decades went by before smoking was restricted to specially designated areas. Severe measures were also adopted within the companies against the consumption of alcohol; in 1979, Sandoz adopted the “prohibition of alcohol for all persons during working hours.”

As a particularly effective prevention strategy, vaccinations were recommended for all associates. For example in 1961, the CIBA company medical service called for all associates under the age of 50 to be vaccinated against poliomyelitis. And in 1971 Sandoz offered all associates voluntary flu shots.

Healthy leisure: the ski section of the CIBA sports club on an Alpine tour, 1955.

Disabled people belong to the company

Through the example of Sandoz, we also see that the integration of sick and disabled people was very important within the company. In 1973 under the title “Disabled people at Sandoz”, the Sandoz Gazette reported that two blind associates were employed on the telephone switchboard, “but blind, paralyzed and other disabled people are also employed in other departments and groups such as the gate service, human resources, technical purchasing, the sample shipment unit and the PPBS packaging plant.” In the recruitment department, “applications from disabled people for a post at Sandoz are given our full attention.” Furthermore, Sandoz provided special accommodation for disabled people.

It was a long road from the poisoning and serious accidents of the 19th century via the first awareness and prevention campaigns of the early 20th century to the comprehensive understanding of healthcare we now have at Novartis. Be Healthy and other initiatives, such as those organized by the Health, Safety & Environment, Diversity & Inclusion and Human Resources departments, underline the extraordinary importance of health promotion for associates and companies alike.

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