Did you know that more than 30 million workers are exposed to hazardous chemicals in their workplace? In North America, because of the safety concerns we have programs like OSHA in place to protect workers. Most of us would immediately think of the SDS as a need to ensure that information on the product is readily available. While the SDS provides valuable information, many overlook the importance of Work Place labels.
Safe chemical use is not just about reading the SDS or wearing the correct PPE. Most importantly, safe chemical use means that the bottles the chemicals are stored in are correctly and adequately labelled so that it’s not just you that knows what the bottle contains. Here is what a workplace label must include:
- Product identifier (product name)
- Information for the safe handling of the product
- Statement that the SDS is available
- May contain the WHMIS/GHS hazard symbols or other pictograms.
We need to protect ourselves and we need to protect our employees. Ensuring that every bottle of chemical you have in your facility is properly labelled with a work place label is a very important safety step!