One objection of mine to adding more OSHA standards is that the standards cited frequently (top ten in frequency) remain generally the same year to year. Sometimes they shift position in frequency order. Sometimes the numbers of citations trend up or down, but generally it all remains in a controlled range.
OSHA’s December 1, 2013, HazCom/GHS training deadline means that within approximately one year the majority of America’s workforce will obtain a revised picture for precautions when working with chemicals.
More than two years after the Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) to revise the existing Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) was introduced, OSHA finalized the new rule and significantly amended the 29 CFR, effective May 26, 2012.
ISHN’s May issue introduced OSHA’s revised Hazard Communication Standard (HazCom 2012), the agency’s de facto adoption of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).
For most workplaces, the heart of Hazcom has been the compilation of material safety data sheets (SDS) housed in 3-ring binders and made available to employees.
Last month, OSHA released long-awaited revisions that will align the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS).
