WHMIS

In this course students (research assistants) will be taken into the lab of a scientist. Unfortunately, the scientist has not labeled all of his chemicals.

He needs the help of the students to figure out what materials are needed and how to complete the reactions without any accidents or spills.

WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information Systems) provides specific training on hazardous materials for the construction industry. This course reviews:

• WHMIS legislation

• Responsibilities under WHMIS legislation
• WHMIS controlled product classes and hazard symbols
• Routes of hazardous material entry into the body
• Exposure effects (acute and chronic)
• Methods for controlling the hazards
• Supplier and workplace labels
• Material safety data sheets

This course does include a practical component where the research assistants will create chemical reactions for some of the controlled product classes.

The research assistants will use Material Safety Data Sheets to unveil the unlabeled chemicals needed for their experiments. The reactions created will demonstrate some of the hazards generated by misuse of these materials as well as proper clean up in the event of a spill (or explosive reaction!).

The course will finish with a brief introduction to the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) that will soon replace WHMIS in Canada so that students will get a head start in understanding the new material.