WHMIS Creating and Maintaining A Safe and Healthy Environment Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry University of Toronto

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WHMISCreating and Maintaining A Safe and
Healthy Environment Department of Chemical
Engineering and Applied ChemistryUniversity of
Toronto
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Outline

• Responsibilities and rights of Workers and
  Supervisors under the Occupational Health and
  Safety Act
• An overview of Departments Safety Policies and
  Programs with respect to the application of the
  Act

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Why We Are Here?

• Under the Occupational Health Safety Act
  (OHSA), all members of the department must
  participate in safety training and annual review
  sessions.
• The University as a workplace is not free of
  health and safety hazards. In this department, we
  use and have inventory of a wide range of
  chemicals, equipment, and apparatus that are
  potentially hazardous.
• The Wallberg building is our second home.

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Numbers of Accident/Incident Reports Filed in Our
Department (2000-2004)
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What is the Occupational Health and Safety Act
(OHSA)?

• Provincial legislation governing workplace health
  and safety issues.
• Outlines rights and duties of the employer,
  supervisor and worker in the workplace to ensure
  a safe and healthy workplace.
• Establishes procedures for dealing with workplace
  hazards.
• Provides for enforcement of the law where
  compliance has not been achieved.

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Federal Legislation
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Ontario Legislation
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What is WHMIS?

• Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System
• A comprehensive plan for providing information on
  the safe use of hazardous materials in Canadian
  workplaces.
• via
• Product labels
• Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)
• Worker education programs

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Definitions Under the Act

• Employer a person who employs one or more
  workers (i.e., University of Toronto).
• Workplace any place in, on or near where a
  person works (i.e., U. of T. and the Department).
• Supervisor anyone in charge of a workplace or
  with authority over a worker (i.e.,
  faculty/academic staff who supervise staff and/or
  students).
• Worker a person paid to perform work or supply
  services (all University employees including
  faculty members, academic, technical and
  administrative staff).
• Students who are paid to perform work (e.g. TAs)
  are Workers covered by the Act.
• Other students are afforded the same protection.

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Main Duties of Employer Under the Act

• Instruct, inform and supervise workers to protect
  their health safety.
• Must ensure workers are knowledgeable
• Appoint competent persons as supervisors.
• Inform workers about any hazard in the workplace.
• Establish a Health Safety committee.

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Main Duties of Employer (contd.)

• Provide training programs for workers,
  supervisors and committee members.
• Prepare, post and review (once a year) a written
  occupational health safety policy.
• Provide and maintain all necessary materials,
  equipment and protective equipment.
• Keep and maintain accurate records of the
  handling, storage, use, and disposal of
  biological, chemical or physical agents.

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Duties of Workers

• Workers must
• work in compliance with the Act and regulations.
• use or wear any protective equipment devices or
  protective clothing required by employer.
• report immediately to their supervisor any
  missing or defective equipment or protective
  device that may be dangerous.
• report immediately to their supervisor any unsafe
  working conditions and violations of the Act or
  other safety regulations.

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Basic Rights of Workers

• The right to participate (through worker
  representation on HS committee).
• The right to know - through training on
  equipment, machinery, working conditions,
  processes, hazardous substances (WHMIS).
• The right to refuse work (if workers believe it
  will endanger themselves or others).

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Common Law Be a Good Citizen

• It is each individuals duty to work and study
  in a manner which does not jeopardize the health
  and safety of themselves and/or others.

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The Departmental Safety Committee

• The Act requires the establishment of a
  Occupational Health and Safety Committee.
• The Departmental Health Safety committee is a
  part of the Faculty committee.

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The Current Membership
Room Telephone Brad Saville (Co-Chair/management
rep) 340 8-7745 Kathy Weishar (Co-Chair/Certified
worker rep.) 201B 8-2740 Leticia Gutierrez
(Secretary) 217 8-1779 Paul Jowlabar 125A 8-5623
Dan Tomchyshyn 260 8-1144 Graeme
Norval 216C 6-7507 Gelareh Bankian-Tabrizi 207 6-3
457 Phil Milczarek 16 8-5504 Endang (Susi)
Susilawati 314 8-7737 Geoff Shirtliff-Hinds EHS
8-4335 2 CEGSA reps, rotated annually
Rep from Office of Environmental Health and
Safety 7th Floor, 215 Huron Street, Toronto,
Ontario.
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Department Policies
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Accident/Incident Reports Must be Filed for

• An accident that has caused injury.
• An accident that involves laboratory procedure
  even though there was no injury.
• An incident which had the potential to cause
  injury.
• A large chemical spill (a few liters).
• A small spill of a highly toxic or flammable
  material.
• A chemical spill outside a laboratory.

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Safety Equipment

• Laboratories are equipped with protective and
  other equipment
• fume hoods, fire extinguishers, showers and
  eye-wash fountains, spill clean-up kits.
• Students and staff must be familiar with the
  location and uses of these.

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Chemical Inventory Management

• An annual laboratory inventory of all chemical
  and physical hazards must be completed and a copy
  supplied to the HS committee.
• Chemicals must be segregated according to their
  properties.
• Flammable liquids should be stored in a special
  fire resistant cabinet.
• Fume hoods should not be used to store chemicals.

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Chemical and Gas Cylinder Transport

• Bottle carriers must be used when transporting
  chemicals.
• Carts must be used to transport gas cylinders
  (Caps securely fastened and no regulators!).
• Passenger elevators must not be used for
  transporting chemicals or gas cylinders.

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Waste Disposal

• All researchers are expected to follow all
  federal, provincial, municipal guidelines when
  disposing of wastes.
• The Department has adopted a procedure of waste
  disposal in accordance with these guidelines.
• Waste chemicals must be disposed of through WB16,
  using fully labeled containers.
• No chemical wastes should be poured down the
  drains.

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Smoking and Consumption of Food and Beverages

• Smoking is not allowed in any building at the
  University.
• Consumption of food and beverages is strictly
  prohibited in all laboratories.
• This includes desk areas that may or may not have
  been partitioned from the laboratory using
  portable partitions.

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Personal Safety and Security

• The Wallberg building is not immune to theft and
  other criminal acts.
• Laboratory and office doors should be locked when
  unoccupied.
• Do not prop open any building door (internal or
  external) after normal operating hours (8am
  -5pm).
• Keep windows closed
• Lab door windows must not be obstructed in any
  way.
• Keep valuables locked in a desk or cabinet
• Purses, wallets, backup disks of computer files,
  etc.

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Safety Phones and First-aid Boxes

• Emergency phone 82222 (Campus security) or
  9-911 (Univ phone) or 911 (cell phone).
• Safety phones outside lab and offices
• All personnel elevators, computer room (WB216),
  graduate and undergraduate common rooms
  (WB247/WB238), payphone opposite WB227, WB316
• There are first aid boxes on each floor of the
  Wallberg building
• WB3, 16, 102, 125, 203, 218, 303, 419

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Emergency Procedures
In case of FIRE

• Pull the nearest fire alarm.
• Telephone University Emergency Centre, 82222
  report your location.
• Evacuate the building.
• Report to fire inspector is anyone still in the
  building? Location of fire?

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When Fire Alarm Sounds

• Evacuate the building (mandatory University
  policy even during exams).
• Do NOT use elevators.
• Do NOT re-enter building until authorized by Fire
  Officer.

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Related University Policies

• Health and Safety Policy (1993)
• www.utoronto.ca/safety/
• Smoking Policy
• Smoking is prohibited in all University
  buildings.
• Policy with respect to AIDS or HIV
• Prohibits discrimination.
• Policy for safety in field research
• Responsibility rests primarily upon the person
  who directly supervises and carry out the
  research on location.

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The Wallberg building is our second home. Many
of us spend more time here than at our actual
home. Making it a safe place benefits all of
us. Let us work together to create and maintain
a safe and healthy work environment.
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