View the entire chapter in a PDF format. Please use the pdf for printing.

Training

Specific training is required for everyone at SLAC who works with hazardous materials. The training of chemical workers (see Definitions) is described in this section. The overall training curriculum for hazardous materials is presented in Hazardous Materials: Training Flow Chart [pdf].

Chemical Worker

All SLAC employees receive their initial orientation through the following course:

• ES&H Course 219, Employee Orientation to Environment, Safety and Health

If the worker is a chemical worker or supervises chemical workers, he or she is required to take the following course:

• ES&H Course 105, Hazardous Materials Management

This course is taken when an employee is first assigned to a chemical worker job.

Non-chemical workers can take the following resource course if they are interested or if they are required to do so by their supervisor.

• ES&H Course 103, Hazard Communication Awareness

In addition to ES&H Course 105, chemical workers must receive on-the-job training, provided by their supervisor. This training is to familiarize chemical workers with the hazards, controls, and procedures specific to their work area. Personnel will complete both types of training prior to working in areas containing hazardous chemicals. Supervisors are responsible for performing on-the-job training when either the hazards change (for example, new chemicals are introduced), the person's job tasks change, or if the supervisor becomes aware of new hazards (for example, new information about the chemicals, results of an accident investigation).

Supervisors must ensure that the OJT includes, at a minimum, the following topics:

1. How to access the MSDS for materials in that particular work area
2. Physical and health hazards of the specific chemicals in the work area
3. Measures staff can take to protect themselves from relevant chemical hazards, including the use and limitations of PPE
4. Methods used to detect the presence or release of hazardous chemicals in the work area

User and subcontractor personnel covered under the hazard communication standard are expected to receive hazard communication training provided by their employer prior to starting work at SLAC.

Chemical Hygiene Worker

All personnel who work in laboratories covered by the chemical hygiene program (CHP) must receive specific training in accordance with the CHP. In addition to material covered under ES&H Course 105, this includes

• Methods and observations used to determine the presence or release of a hazardous chemical, such as monitoring conducted by the ES&H Department, continuous monitoring devices, and the visual appearance or odor of hazardous chemicals being used
• Measures that lab workers can take to protect themselves from hazards, including appropriate engineering and administrative controls and PPE
• Physical and health hazards and environmental aspects in the work area, including flammable and reactive materials, irritants and corrosives, acute poisons, chronic organic toxins, allergens, and genetic toxins
• Applicable details of the CHP (that is, the individual elements and its availability), including laboratory-specific operating procedures and protocols

The course will be available as a template and should be modified by the lab manager to make it specific to the applicable lab. The lab worker and lab manager should sign the course certification that documents that lab-specific topics were covered. The frequency for refresher training is not stipulated in OSHA regulations, therefore, departments and divisions are encouraged to evaluate the need for such training on a case-by-case basis and in accordance with other ES&H training in the individual's training plan. User and subcontractor personnel who work in the laboratories covered under the CHP must review and sign those laboratories' specific procedures.

Personal Protective Equipment Training

Following completion of ES&H Course 105 and the chemical hygiene program training, all chemical workers are required to take the PPE course:

• ES&H Course 255, Personal Protective Equipment

No retraining is required, unless there is a new job assignment involving new exposure situations, if the hazards change, or if the supervisor becomes aware of new hazards.

Job- and Chemical-specific Safety Training

Depending upon the results of the SLAC Training Assessment (STA), workers may be required to complete other chemical-related training programs. Refer to Hazardous Materials: Training Flow Chart [pdf] for when these courses are required and the applicable chapter of this manual for further details.