21
Fall 2014 Issue
Safety & Workers’ Compensation
]
OSHA Finalizes its Hazard Communication Standard
The new standard is expected to prevent over 500 workplace injuries annually
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
revised its Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to align
with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of
Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). According to
OSHA, the new standard further improves safety and health
protections for America’s workers.
The new hazard communication standard still requires chemical
manufacturers and importers to evaluate the chemicals they
produce or import and provide hazard information to employers
and workers by putting labels on containers and preparing
safety data sheets. However, the old standard allowed chemical
manufacturers and importers to convey hazard information on
labels and material safety data sheets in whatever format they
chose. The modified standard provides a single set of harmonized
criteria for classifying chemicals according to their health and
physical hazards and specifies hazard communication elements
for labeling and safety data sheets.
BENEFITS: The new standard covers over 43 million workers
who produce or handle hazardous chemicals in more than five
million workplaces across the country. The modification is
expected to prevent over 500 workplace injuries and illnesses
and 43 fatalities annually. Once fully implemented, it will also:
• Improve the quality and consistency of hazard information
in the workplace, making it safer for workers to do their jobs and easier for
employers to stay competitive;
• Enhance worker comprehension of hazards, especially for low and limited-
literacy workers, reduce confusion in the workplace, facilitate safety
training, and result in safer handling and use of chemicals;
• Provide workers quicker and more efficient access to information on the
safety data sheets;
• Result in cost savings to American businesses of more than $475 million in
productivity improvements, fewer safety data sheet and label updates and
simpler new hazard communication training: and
• Reduce trade barriers by harmonizing with systems around the world.
Rulemaking background: OSHA published a Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking to update the Hazard Communication Standard in
September 2009 and held public hearings in March 2010.
Major changes to the Hazard Communication Standard:
• Hazard classification: Chemical manufacturers and importers are
required to determine the hazards of the chemicals they produce or
import. Hazard classification under the new, updated standard provides
specific criteria to address health and physical hazards as well as
classification of chemical mixtures.
• Labels: Chemical manufacturers and importers must provide a label that
includes a signal word, pictogram, hazard statement, and precautionary
statement for each hazard class and category.
• Safety Data Sheets: The new format requires 16 specific sections, ensuring
consistency in presentation of important protection information.
• Information and training: To facilitate understanding of the new system,
the new standard required that workers be trained by Dec. 1, 2013 on the
new label elements and safety data sheet format, in addition to the current
training requirements.
Changes from the Proposed to the Final Rule: OSHA
reviewed the record and revised the Final Rule in response
to the comments submitted. Major changes include:
• Maintaining the disclosure of exposure limits (Threshold Limit Values [TLVs])
established by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial
• Hygienists (ACGIH) and carcinogen status from nationally and
internationally recognized lists of carcinogens on the safety data sheets;
• Clarification that the borders of pictograms must be red on the label;
• Flexibility regarding the required precautionary and hazard statements
to allow label preparers to consolidate and/or eliminate inappropriate or
redundant statements; and
• Longer deadlines for full implementation of the standard (see the chart below):
What you need to do and when:
• Chemical users: Continue to update safety data sheets when new ones
become available, provide training on the new label elements and update
hazard communication programs if new hazards are identified.
• Chemical Producers: Review hazard information for all chemicals produced
or imported, classify chemicals according to the new classification criteria,
and update labels and safety data sheets.
