City nail salons are woefully underinspected by state agents — putting customers at risk of health problems like reproductive issues, asthma and even cancer, Public Advocate Letitia James warned Monday.
“The problem is that there are 5,000 nail salons throughout New York [state] … but there are only 27 inspectors,” James said as she unveiled a report, “How Safe is Your Nail Salon?”
“There’s a toxic trio of chemicals that are found in many nail salons that have been linked to reproductive harm, respiratory problems, asthma and cancer,” she said of formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate and toluene.
The chemicals need to be handled with particular care and require proper ventilation and gloves, her report concluded.
More than 2,000 nail salons operate in New York City, with many immigrant workers who do not speak English and lack the education to understand the risks, according to the report.
Most of the businesses aren’t inspected regularly because the Department of State, which oversees the industry, doesn’t have enough inspectors, James said.
The majority of those inspectors work in the city, said Department of State spokesman Laz Benitez — though he could not immediately provide the number.
New Yorkers looking for a fresh polish have sometimes gotten burned — literally.
A woman sued William Spring Nail Spa in lower Manhattan last year claiming a pedicurist left a callus remover on her foot for too long, resulting in a bad burn. 
But more complaints have come in from workers, who describe working in poor conditions for little money.
One former worker at a Harlem nail salon described the conditions there as horrible.
“It was in the basement. There was no ventilation. No windows. No gloves. No masks. And very strong chemical fumes,” Ying Zhu, 54, of Flushing, Queens, said through a translator.
The city currently has no oversight power for the industry. James is seeking state legislation to To change that, the state would have to allow the city to perform inspections for cleanliness and safety.
Oversight would include an incentive program giving salons $500 grants to bring their businesses up to code.
James’ report also recommends that the city conduct a safety study documenting the health problems experienced by workers, provide multilingual safety information and require that businesses provide protective gear to workers.
“No one has ever put pressure on [the state] to do anything,” said Luna Ranjit, head of Adhikaar, which represents Nepalese immigrant laborers. “Hopefully, this will be one step toward that.”