If your business uses hazardous chemicals, OSHA requires you to provide a written hazard communication (HazCom) plan?
In case of an accident, your plan is the first thing a compliance officer will ask to see. Although it doesn’t have to be long or detailed, this document must be well thought out, clear, and comprehensive.
Your HazCom plan should include:
- Policy statement. Explain the purpose of the plan and express your commitment to letting employees know how they can protect themselves from chemical hazards
- Plan administration. Describe the duties of the program administrator and others with responsibilities for different aspects of the plan, together with contact information.
- Updates and reviews. Schedule updates and reviews of the plan at regular intervals and whenever new hazards are uncovered.
- Plan availability. Explain how employees and government regulators can access the document.
- Labels. Describe the requirements for container labeling.
- Safety data sheets (SDS). Set procedures for ensuring that employees can obtain necessary sheets.
- Employee training. Identify information about hazardous chemicals for communication to employees in comprehensive training sessions, with follow-up.
- Nonroutine tasks. From time to time, employees might need to perform nonroutine tasks that could result in temporary exposure to hazardous chemicals. Your plan should include a statement that, in these cases, you will provide workers with information on the hazard, appropriate safety measures or equipment, and methods of reducing the danger.
- List of hazardous chemicals. Attach a list of hazardous substances that includes each chemical’s name. number, manufacturer, and areas in which the chemical is used.
For a complimentary review of your HazCom plan, feel free to get in touch with the workplace safety professionals at our agency. We’re always here to serve you.
