A survey was carried out on legislation in 14 industrialized countries relating to the prevention of occupational cancers. Two types of legislation were considered in particular: that dealing specifically with chemical carcinogens in the working environment, and that relating to compensation for occupational cancers. The survey revealed that legislation prohibiting the manufacture of chemicals known to be carcinogenic in humans or known to represent a possible cancer hazard to humans exists only in a limited number of the 14 countries considered and does not cover the same chemicals in each country. Legislation concerning monetary compensation is more common in these countreis than is legislation providing for primary prevention. There are two fundamental deficiencies in even the more comprehensive legislation. First, some chemicals for which carcinogenicity in humans has been proved are still produced in large quantities and are not covered by legislation. Second, the criteria used to determine which chemicals may be hazardous to humans when only experimental evidence of carcinogenicity exists are overexclusive, while the allowed concentrations of some of the chemicals recognized as possibly hazardous to humans appear to be very high.