Today, we’re going to talk about the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s, or OSHA’s, Hazard Communication Standard, or worker right to know, and new requirements for the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals, or GHS. The standard makes sure that you know all about the possible dangers of hazardous chemicals that you use in your job and gives you the information to protect yourself from those hazards.

Your employer is required to provide you with the information about the hazards that you’re exposed to. The standard was amended with GHS requirements to make sure that information is more understandable to you. During this session, we’re going to talk about how to understand the hazards, how to protect yourself, and some of the amendments designed to make your workplace safer.

Session Objectives

The main objective of this session is to teach you about hazard communication. By the time the session is over, you should be able to:

• Recognize hazardous chemicals;
• Understand the risks they pose;
• Interpret the information on chemical labels;
• Understand safety data sheets, or SDSs;
• Protect yourself from physical and health hazards; and
• Respond to emergencies.

How Much Do You Already Know?

Before we begin this session, let’s take a few minutes to see how much you already know about the GHS and chemical labels. Decide whether each statement on the screen is TRUE or FALSE.

• Under the GHS, OSHA will no longer regulate workplace hazardous chemicals. • Hazard Communication applies to chemical manufacturers only.
• SDSs are better organized and may provide more information than MSDSs.
• Personal protective equipment, or PPE, is only required if there is a spill.
• Pictograms on a label convey specific information about the hazards of a chemical.

How did you do? Did you get all the answers right?

If not, don’t worry. You’ll learn all about these issues and a lot more during the session.

Where You Encounter Hazardous Chemicals

We all use potentially hazardous chemicals, both at work and at home. Think of some of the things you do on a regular basis:

• Fill your vehicle with gasoline or diesel.
• Use liquid cleaners.
• Use solvents or acids at work.
• Top off your vehicle’s antifreeze.

In many cases, the seriousness of the risks depends on the material used, how much of it you use, and how often you use it. With some chemicals, though, improper handling can lead to immediate injury or illness.

Why Prevention Is Important

Hazardous chemicals are found in many workplaces, and millions of workers face potential exposure every day. Here are some facts:

• 43 million workers are potentially exposed annually at 5 million businesses;
• 880,000 hazardous chemicals are used in the United States;
• There are 50,000 injuries and illnesses annually;
• There are 125 fatalities annually; and
• Chronic illness and fatalities are too often the outcomes of chemical exposure at work.

Numbers like these show why it’s so important to know about hazards in your workplace and how to get the information you need to protect yourself. Think about the ways that you might be exposed to hazardous chemicals when doing your job.

Hazard Communication Standard

The Hazard Communication Standard describes what employers must do to inform employees about chemical hazards in the workplace. For example, under the law, employers must provide you with:

• A written Hazard Communication Program that explains how the information is communicated to you;
• A list of the hazardous chemicals used in your workplace, so you know that you might be asked to use a potentially hazardous chemical;
• SDSs for each type of hazardous chemical. These contain detailed information about the chemical, its possible hazards, and ways to protect yourself;
• Labels on containers that identify and describe the chemical hazards; and
• Training that teaches you about the Hazard Communication Standard, tells you how to read and understand the information on SDSs and chemical labels, and shows you ways you can protect yourself against possible hazards.

Your supervisor or safety manager can tell you how to obtain your company’s written Hazard Communication plan and a copy of the Hazard Communication Standard.

What Is GHS?

• As we discussed, OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard, or HazCom, requires us to tell you about hazards in the workplace. Two key ways we do that is with labels on chemical containers and safety data sheets (formerly MSDSs). Chemical labels and SDSs have been an essential part of basic safety in the workplace for decades. But, because of the global economy, a system is needed to standardize safety, health, and environmental information about substances so that people all over the world get the same hazard information. That system is called the GHS.
• The GHS itself is not a regulation or a standard. OSHA will implement the GHS system through HazCom and continue to regulate chemical safety in this country.
• The purpose of GHS is to provide a universal approach to defining hazards, classifying substances, and communicating hazard information and protective measures to employers and employees throughout the United States and the world.

Employee Responsibilities

Although the Hazard Communication Standard applies mainly to employers, hazard communication is not effective unless you also do your part in working safely with chemicals. As an employee, you must be able to:

• Read labels and SDSs and understand the information they contain. You should know where SDSs are located and how to find the one you need to learn more about specific materials. And you should know how to find the specific information you need on each SDS, such as how to protect yourself against exposure.
• Always follow instructions and warnings about how to use hazardous chemicals safely. These include both written instructions on chemical labels and SDSs, and verbal instructions and safety information you may receive from supervisors or safety trainers.
• Identify the possible hazards of using a chemical before you start to use it. Don’t wait until you have already been exposed to find out that you’ve put yourself in danger.
• Finally, participate actively in the safety training that we provide. Don’t hesitate to ask questions so that you clearly understand what it takes to protect yourself from hazards from potentially dangerous chemicals.

Forms of Hazardous Chemicals

Now let’s consider the types of chemicals we use and the kinds of hazards they might present.

Chemicals are encountered in three basic forms:

• Solids, such as dusts, powders, or fumes.
• Liquids, including vapors and mists. Examples include gasoline and other fuels, as well as cleaners and solvents.
• Gases, which include aerosols.

Physical Hazards

Hazardous chemicals present several types of hazards: physical hazards, health hazards, asphyxiant, pyrophoric, combustible dust, and others that are not classified. A physical hazard occurs when a chemical poses one of the following hazardous effects:

• Explosive
• Flammable (gases, aerosols, liquids, or solids);
• Oxidizer (liquid, solid, or gas);
• Self-reactive;
• Pyrophoric (liquid or solid);
• Self-heating;
• Organic peroxide;
• Corrosive to metal;
• Gas under pressure; or
• Emits flammable gas when it comes in contact with water.

Health Hazards

Health hazards can cause illness or other health problems, which can include short-term effects, such as headaches, dizziness, or skin irritation, or long-term effects, such as organ damage or cancer. A health hazard occurs when a chemical poses one of the following hazardous effects:

• Acute toxicity (any route of exposure);
• Skin corrosion or irritation;
• Serious eye damage or eye irritation;
• Respiratory or skin sensitization;
• Germ cell mutagenicity;
• Carcinogenicity;
• Reproductive toxicity;
• Specific target organ toxicity (single or repeated exposure); or
• Aspiration hazard.

Other Chemical Hazards

In addition to the physical and health hazards we’ve discussed, there are other hazards that you may encounter that are dangerous to life and property in the workplace:

• Asphyxiation, or asphyxia, is a condition where there is not enough oxygen in the air to breathe normally, leading to suffocation. A simple asphyxiant is a chemical that displaces oxygen in the air and causes rapid suffocation. Pure nitrogen is an example of an asphyxiant.
• Pyrophoric gas is a chemical that catches fire spontaneously if exposed to air.
• Combustible dust is a chemical in dust form that may form explosive concentrations of dust in the air. In some cases, a chemical is shipped in a form that is not yet dust, but under normal conditions of use or processing, it will form a combustible dust.
• Hazards not otherwise classified represent a chemical that may have hazardous physical or health effects, but the specific effects have not been identified under the hazard classification process outlined in the Hazard Communication rule.

Hazard Detection And Monitoring

There are several ways to detect chemical hazards in your work area.

• Visual appearance—For example, you can see chemical reactions such as smoke, froth, mists, fumes, or fire coming from a chemical or its container.
• Continuous monitoring device—For some chemicals or other toxic substances, there may be monitoring devices in work areas to detect concentrations in the air that exceed safe limits. Your supervisor will provide you with information about such devices, if any.
• Odor—Sometimes an unusual odor will be your first indication of exposure to a chemical. Report any unusual odors to your supervisor.

Hazardous Chemicals At Your Facility

• You should know where chemicals in your work areas are located. Your supervisor or safety manager should provide you with that information. If you have any questions about what chemicals are used in your workplace or where they are located, be sure to ask.
• Find out where the written hazard communication plan is located, and review it.
• Review the list of chemicals in the written hazard communication plan. It will identify the chemicals present at the facility.
• You can also review the SDSs for all the chemicals used or stored in your work areas. Talk to your supervisor about accessing the SDSs. We’ll talk more about SDSs in a few minutes.

How Hazardous Chemicals Enter Your Body

Chemicals can enter your body in several ways:

• Skin or contact with the eyes, which is a big risk with liquids.
• Inhalation of fumes, vapors, mists, dusts, or gases. Once in your lungs, they can enter the bloodstream.
• If your hands are contaminated when you eat, you can accidentally swallow hazardous chemicals. And,
• Absorbing hazardous chemicals through the skin.

Test Your Knowledge

Now, let’s try an exercise to test your knowledge of the information presented so far. Decide if each of the following sentences is TRUE or FALSE.

• The GHS replaces OSHA regulations.
• Carcinogenicity is a health effect of a hazardous chemical.
• Under OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard, you must know how to read SDSs.
• There are a total of 5 million workers potentially exposed to hazardous chemicals in the United States.
• The GHS is intended to standardize the information about hazardous chemicals for people all over the world.

How did you do? Were you able to identify all the true statements?

What Have You Learned?

Now, it’s time to ask yourself if you understand the information presented so far. For example, do you understand what we’ve said about:

• Why this course is important?
• Where you can encounter hazardous chemicals?
• Physical and health effects?
• How hazardous chemicals enter your body?
• And, your responsibilities under HazCom?

It’s important to understand all this information so that you can work safely with hazardous chemicals.

Let’s continue now and talk about chemical labels.

Container Labels

• Generally, all containers of hazardous chemicals supplied to the workplace must be labeled. The labels on containers delivered to your facility must either be kept intact or, if removed or damaged, be immediately marked with the required information. This includes the product identifier and a combination of words, pictures, or symbols that provide general information about the chemical hazards and specific information regarding the potential physical and health hazards.
• Labels are required on all portable and secondary containers if not for immediate use. The label must include the chemical identification and the hazards it presents.
• Labels are not required on:

– Pipes or piping systems, or

– Portable containers where the hazardous chemical is transferred from a labeled container for immediate use by the employee doing the transfer.

What’s on a Chemical Label?

You will find the following information elements on chemical labels:

• Product identifier
• Supplier identification
• Signal word
• Pictogram
• Hazard statement
• Precautionary statement
• Supplemental information

Let’s take a look at each element.

What’s on a Chemical Label?

The chemical label must contain the product identifier for the chemical and supplier identification information.

• The product identifier is the name or number that allows you to identify the chemical in the container.
• Supplier identification must include the name, address, and telephone number for the chemical manufacturer, importer, or other supplier.
• The chemical label will include one of two signal words that tell you the relative severity of the hazard presented. It alerts you to a potential hazard.
• “Danger” is used for the more severe hazards.
• “Warning” is used for less severe hazards and is less serious than “Danger.”

What’s on a Chemical Label?

• Hazard statements assigned to a hazard class or category appear on the label. They describe the nature of the hazard and, where appropriate, the degree of the hazard. The hazard statement can include information on an exposure being fatal or toxic, organ damage, and routes of exposure. For example, a hazard statement could say:

– Highly flammable liquid and vapor. May cause liver and kidney damage.

• Precautionary statements describe recommended measures that should be taken to minimize or prevent adverse effects from exposure to a chemical or improper storage or handling. Four types of precautionary statements appear on a chemical label. They are:

1. Prevention. For example, “Wash thoroughly after handling.”
2. Response. For example, “If swallowed, immediately call a poison center.”
3. Storage. For example, “Store locked up.”
4. Disposal. For example, “Dispose of in accordance with local, regional, national, and international regulations, as specified.”

What’s on a Chemical Label?

• Pictograms include a symbol and other graphic elements intended to convey specific information about the hazards of a chemical. They appear on a white background within a diamond-shaped square with a red border and are placed on the label on the basis of a chemical’s hazard classification.
• There are eight mandatory hazard symbols used in pictograms. Each conveys the specific hazard of the chemical, with a ninth nonmandatory symbol for environmental hazards.
• Supplemental information includes any additional information provided on the chemical label that is not required or specified by the GHS amendments to HazCom.

Safety Data Sheets

Labels give you a snapshot of the risks associated with a chemical. The SDS gives you the most complete and detailed information. The SDS for each chemical:

• Is a detailed written description of the chemical;
• Describes its hazards, as well as precautions and remedies to releases and exposure; and
• Must be readily available for you to read. You should always read the SDS before starting to work with a chemical.

SDS vs. MSDS

• The SDS has replaced the material safety data sheet (MSDS) that we’re all familiar with.
• The GHS-compliant SDS is composed of 16 sections in a required sequence of headings.

Let’s take a look at the 16 sections in the proper sequence.

 

 

Section 1 – 4

• Section 1 contains the product identifier and other means of identification, recommended uses and restrictions, supplier information, and an emergency number.
• Section 2 contains the hazard classification, the signal word, hazard and precautionary statements, hazard symbol, other hazards not otherwise classified, and any statements regarding mixtures consisting of ingredients of unknown toxicity.
• Section 3 contains information about chemical composition and ingredients, including chemical name, common name and synonyms, Chemical Abstracts Service, or CAS, number and other unique identifier, and impurities and stabilizing additives that are classified and that contribute to the classification of the substance.
• Section 4 contains a description of necessary first aid, symptoms and health effects (acute and delayed), and the need for immediate medical attention and special treatment (if required).

Section 5 – 8

• Section 5 contains information about suitable and unsuitable extinguishing substances, specific hazards from the chemical, and special PPE and precautions for firefighters.
• Section 6 contains information about personal precautions and PPE, emergency precautions, environmental procedures, and containment and cleanup methods and materials.
• Section 7 describes precautions for safe handling and conditions for safe storage.
• Section 8 contains information about control parameters (such as exposure limit values), engineering controls, and individual protection measures and PPE.

Section 9 – 12

• Section 9 contains information about the substance’s physical and chemical properties, for example, appearance, odor, melting and freezing points, flash point, and flammability.
• Section 10 contains information about the substance’s stability or reactivity, possible hazardous reactions, conditions to avoid, incompatible materials, and hazardous decomposition products.
• Section 11 contains information describing likely routes of exposure, symptoms, immediate and delayed health effects, numerical measures of toxicity, and whether the chemical is listed in the National Toxicology Program Report on Carcinogens, the International Agency for Research on Cancer Monographs, or by OSHA.
• Section 12 contains ecological information such as the substance’s ecotoxicity, persistence and degradability, bioaccumulative potential, mobility in soil, and other adverse environmental effects.

Section 13 – 16

• Section 13 provides information on waste residues and safe handling and disposal of substances and contaminated packaging.
• Section 14 gives information on the safe transportation of the chemical.
• Section 15 contains safety, health, and environmental regulatory information.
• Section 16 provides other relevant information.

The Written Plan

Under HazCom, your employer is required to maintain a written hazard communication program that serves as the blueprint for HazCom at your facility. The program:

• Identifies participating personnel;
• Describes how the hazards of nonroutine tasks and chemicals in unlabeled pipes are communicated;
• Gives criteria for labeling and SDSs;
• Describes criteria for training; and
• Has a list of all hazardous chemicals known to be present in the workplace.

The program must be made readily available to you or your designated representatives.

Personal Protection

After you know the hazards a chemical presents, you need to know what is being done to protect you and what you must do to protect yourself.

• Engineering controls are composed of things like substitution, isolation, ventilation, and equipment modification and are designed to minimize or reduce exposure to a hazard. Appropriate engineering controls will appear in a chemical’s SDS.
• Work practice controls are policies and practices that are put in place to see how a job should be done. Again, this is done to minimize or reduce exposure to a hazard.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

When engineering and work practice controls cannot eliminate a chemical hazard, using PPE is an essential way to protect yourself. Here are some of the types of PPE that might be required:

• Face shields or safety goggles to protect you from splashes— remember that regular prescription eyeglasses do NOT qualify as proper eye protection.
• Gloves to protect your hands from contact with chemicals.
• Foot protection, such as rubber boots, to guard against splashes.
• Head protection, such as hard hats or hoods, also protect you from splashes.
• Aprons or full bodysuits; again, these protect against splashes. A full bodysuit may also protect you from dust and vapors.
• Finally, respiratory protection protects you from breathing in hazardous vapors, mists, and fumes.

Emergency Response to Spills

Knowing proper emergency procedures is another important part of safety. That’s why you should always read the label and SDS for every material to find out exactly what to do in case you or a coworker is overexposed. Emergency procedures may include:

• Flushing eyes with water for 15 minutes in case of contact;
• Washing skin with soap and water and removing contaminated clothing;
• Moving to fresh air if a person has been inhaling a hazardous chemical and not returning until it is safe; and
• Getting emergency medical assistance if a person has accidentally swallowed a hazardous chemical.

Think about the emergency procedures you should use if you or a coworker is overexposed to a hazardous chemical. Do you know where eyewash stations, emergency showers, and first-aid kits are located? Do you know how to use them?

Exercise

Now let’s try another exercise to test your knowledge of the information presented so far. Decide if each of the following statements is TRUE or FALSE.

• Chemical labels supply the most detailed information about a chemical’s hazards.
• The SDS has 16 sections.
• PPE is the first line of defense against a chemical’s hazards.
• Supplier identification can be found on a chemical label.
• The hazardous chemical list is part of the written HazCom program.

How did you do? Were you able to identify the correct answers to each statement?

What Have You Learned?

Let’s take a few minutes now to review and make sure you understand the information presented in the previous slides. Do you understand:

• Chemical labels?
• The SDS sections?
• The written HazCom program?
• Engineering and work practice controls?
• PPE?

It’s important to understand all this information so that you will protect yourself from the hazardous chemicals in your facility.

Key Points To Remeber

Here are the main points to remember about this training session on hazard communication:

• Hazard communication makes you safer.
• The GHS provides standardized safety and health information.
• Chemicals can present both physical and health hazards.
• Labels and SDSs provide information on specific chemicals.
• Use of appropriate PPE reduces risk of injury and illness.

This concludes the Hazard Communication and GHS—What Employees Need to Know training program.