Park Lawn Preschool Inc. Park Lawn Preschool * Humber Bay Child Care Centre * PLP Early Learning Centre at St. Mark

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1 Park Lawn Preschool Inc. Park Lawn Preschool * Humber Bay Child Care Centre * PLP Early Learning Centre at St. Mark PLP HS 214 Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System The Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) is a national system designed and legislated to ensure employees are informed about hazardous materials to minimize or eliminate risks and protect employee health. WHMIS gives everyone the right to know about the hazards of materials used in the workplace and delivers the necessary information by means of: Labels on all containers of hazardous materials Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), provide valuable information that tells you how to handle the chemicals as well as what to do in the case of an emergency situation. Worker Training on how to use chemicals found within their work areas. Reviewed and updated yearly. The Health and Safety Act gives three rights to employees: 1. The Right to Participate The employee have the right to be part of the process of identifying and resolving health and safety concerns. Although PLP is not required to have a Joint Health and Safety Committee, we have elected to create one as we do care for our staff s health and safety. 2. The Right to Know- the employee has the right to know about any potential hazards to which they may be exposed. This means the right to be trained and to have information on machinery, equipment, working conditions, processes and hazardous substances. 3. The Right to Refuse Unsafe Work - Employees have the right to refuse work that they believe is dangerous to either their own health and safety or that of another employee. The Act describes the exact process for refusing dangerous work and the responsibilities for the employer in responding to such a refusal. Employer Responsibility Under the WHMIS regulations, employers must: Obtain MSDS from the supplier or manufacturer Ensure that current MSDS are readily accessible for workers to review Provide copies of the MSDS to the joint Health and Safety Committee or health and safety representative upon request. Establish an education program for workers who may be exposed to hazardous materials in the workplace, including those working in proximity of these materials. Consult with the Health and Safety Committee Review the information and training programs annually or more frequently if required by a change in condition. PLP HS 214 WHMIS 2015 Page 1 of 5

2 Worker Responsibility Workers are required to: Know about the hazardous materials to which they are exposed to in the workplace. Be aware of the location and contents of the MSDS for their department and notify their supervisor if an MSDS is missing. Refrain from removing, defacing, or altering a label on a container of hazardous materials. Use and maintain protective equipment, devices and clothing as required by the employer. Participate in WHMIS training and engage in safe work practices. Recognizing Hazardous Materials There are eight (8) distinctive WHMIS warning symbols and labels that are used for different kinds of hazardous materials. Class A Compressed Gas Can explode and take off like a rocket! Class B Flammable and Combustible Material Can burst into flames very suddenly if there is a contact with an ignition source Class C: Class D, Division 1: Oxidizing Material Will feed oxygen into any fire, making it larger and hotter Poisonous and Infectious Material; Immediate Effects Will cause immediate and serious poisoning Class D, Division 2: Material Causing Other Toxic Effects - poisoning and long-term illness. Can cause slow Class D, Division 3: Biohazardous Infectious Material - infectious disease. Can give you a serious Class E: Corrosive Material - your skin Can seriously harm your eyes and burn Class F: Dangerously Reactive Material Can explode from vibration shock or sudden temperature change. PLP HS 214 WHMIS 2015 Page 2 of 5

3 WHMIS Labels WHMIS Labels are used to identify controlled products. They should be easily recognized and provide basic information about the risk and precautions associated with the use of the hazardous material. The WHMIS labels must be easy to read and must be clearly displayed on the container. Supplier Labels (identified by hatched border for products exceeding 100ml.) The following information must be provided in English and French on a supplier label: Product identifier Name of supplier The statement refer to MSDS Appropriate hazard symbols Risk phrases Precautionary measures First aid measures Sample WHMIS Supplier Label Workplace Labels (may not have distinctive hatched border) Name of product Safe handling procedures Reference to the MSDS Label required if controlled product is decanted or transferred from the original supplier-labeled container to another container. PLP HS 214 WHMIS 2015 Page 3 of 5

4 Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) Material Safety Data Sheets provide detailed information about the physical properties of the hazardous material and the first aid measure to use in an emergency. An MSDS must be updated every three years or when there is a change to the product. The following 9 categories of information must be included: Product information Hazardous ingredients Physical information Fire or explosion hazard Reactivity information First aid measures Preventive measures Health hazard information Personal information Preventing Illness and Injury from Hazardous Materials The best way to protect yourself is to know what the materials are, how they can hurt you and how to handle them and how to clean them up. Once you have recognized the hazard and have assessed its potential threat in your workplace, you can learn how to protect yourself and your co-workers. Preventative techniques may be applied: Using personal protective equipment Job rotation Safe work procedures General ventilation Housekeeping Portable barriers Substitute a less hazardous product if possible. Worker Training Park Lawn Preschool Inc. provides mandatory WHMIS training for all employees during the orientation process and yearly thereafter or when a product has changed. WHMIS training will provide employees with basic knowledge of recognizing and safe handling of hazardous materials. The centre supervisors will give employees that are new to the centre an orientation of where hazardous materials are stored. Refusing Unsafe Work Ministry of Labour PLP HS 214 WHMIS 2015 Page 4 of 5

5 Can I refuse to do work I think is unsafe? When staff have spoken to their supervisor and they still have reason to believe that the work they have been asked to do may endanger your safety or the safety of those around you, you have the right under the Occupational Health and Safety Act to refuse to perform the work. How can I refuse work? Tell the centre supervisor that you believe that the situation is not safe, and that you will not continue the work until the situation is made right. If necessary, let them know that you are exercising your right under the Occupational Health and Safety Act to refuse work. Make sure there s no doubt that it s not a discussion or a complaint investigation, but that you re refusing to perform the work until they do something about your concerns. Once you have refused to work under the Act, you cannot be ordered or forced to do the work and you cannot be disciplined for refusing the unsafe work. Are there rules to follow? There is a set procedure that the worker member of the health and safety committee or a health and safety representative and your supervisor will be required to follow. The rules say that they must investigate the problem. You will wait in a safe place while they do this. You will be an important part of the investigation, as you will be the one to decide if the problem that caused you to refuse to work has been fixed. If the problem is resolved, and most are, you return to work. If the investigation is finished and they let you know that they feel the work is safe and you have reasonable grounds to believe the work is still unsafe and if it cannot be resolved through the internal investigation, a Ministry of Labour inspector will be called in to investigate. While the Ministry of Labour investigation is underway, you may be assigned to another job. The inspector will decide if the original job is safe. That decision will determine if you return to your job or if changes must be made before you resume the work. Do all workers have the right to refuse unsafe work? Yes, but for some occupations, the right is restricted. Can I be disciplined or fired for refusing to work or raising concerns? It is against the law for an employer to punish or fire a worker for refusing work that the worker thinks is unsafe. PLP HS 214 WHMIS 2015 Page 5 of 5