Hazard Communication Standard Basic Outline Requirements

Any employee has the right to know what kind of chemical hazards he may potentially be exposed to. OSHA Standard 1910.1200, Hazard Communication, addresses this issue and is mandatory training. This training is done during an employee's orientation. A hazard communication policy is mandatory for any company dealing with any chemical intended for commercial use. Employers are required to develop a written HazCom plan, make it available to workers, provide Material Safety Data Sheets--MSDS--of all chemicals in the workplace, and provide personal protective equipment--PPE--for employees' use at any time.

Hazard Determination

• An employer must know the raw materials his people are handling.

  Before a Hazard Communication plan can be written, an inventory of hazardous chemicals must be completed by the employer. A hazardous chemical is any chemical or substance listed with OSHA 1910 Subpart Z; Threshold Limit Values for Chemical Substances and Physical Agents in the Work Environment by ACGIH; the Annual Report on Carcinogens by the National Toxicology Program; or reports by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

  Any hazardous substance known to be in the workplace shall be listed. Any hazardous substance having a health hazard shall be listed.

  This inventory is kept by the employer and added to or deleted from as necessary.

Written Plan

• A HazCom program is essential to employee safety.

  An employer is required to develop a written Hazard Communication plan and to instruct her employees about HazCom. The written plan must include the chemicals in the workplace, the labeling of these chemicals, hazards of the chemicals, MSDS location, PPE location and requirements, and emergency procedures for an exposure and/or release.

  The plan must also be available, at anytime, for employee reference. This training is required before an employee assumes his duties.

Proper Labeling

• Proper labeling goes beyond knowing the contents of a container.

  All chemicals in the workplace must be properly labeled. This means any chemical being shipped, received, or transported to another work area. All containers must have a label with the chemical name, hazard warnings, and the name and address of the manufacturer, shipper, or responsible party.

  No labels will be marked out, defaced, or made unreadable unless replaced by another label giving the same information.

Material Safety Data Sheets

• Obtaining hazardous chemical information should never be a crap shoot.

  There must be an MSDS for all chemicals in the workplace and be available to all employees at any time. Any chemicals received into a business must include an MSDS for each different chemical received.

  MSDS are required to provide: chemical name; physical and chemical data; hazard classes; fire and explosion data; health hazards; spill and leak procedures; special protection data; handling procedures; and special precautions.

Employee Training

• Knowing proper procedures is only possible through trainng.

  Training is the fifth and final part to the basic requirements. Employee training can be done by in-house trainers, contracted instructors or a simple video prepared by the employer explaining the company plan. As long as the training covers all aspects of the company's written plan, training can be conducted as the employer deems proper.

  The final piece of training would be to show the employee where the HazCom plan, MSDS, and PPE are located.