Minister gives workers direct access to asbestos test results

Workers on construction sites in Denmark will be able to check asbestos test results themselves from the turn of the year, under rule changes prompted by a case in Aalborg, broadcaster DR reports.

Johnny Albertsen, a bricklayer, worked for about six months at a construction site on Badehusvej in Aalborg without knowing he could be exposed to potentially deadly asbestos dust. The dust can cause cancer of the lining of the lungs. About 200 tradespeople worked at the site.

A worker for the developer falsified an asbestos test, changing its result from positive to negative. Under the new rules, workers will have direct access to test results, for example by scanning a QR code at the construction site.

Albertsen said he was glad the changes would make this kind of fraud easier to detect. Had the test result been known, he said, he would not have entered the site.

Employment Minister Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen said the Aalborg case led her to change the rules. She said she had discussed the issue with workers from the site, who suggested giving employees access to the results. The changes are part of a national asbestos strategy agreed by a political majority in October 2025.

3F, a trade union, welcomed the measure. Reidar Kogstad, head of the construction trades association and 3F in Aalborg, said workers would be able to check whether the tests claimed by site management had actually been carried out.

Kogstad said the change was a useful tool but would not end asbestos exposure at work. He said 3F still wanted asbestos found in buildings to be removed before renovation begins, a measure not included in the changes.