Hazard Communication, or HazCom, means that your employer must tell you what chemicals you are exposed to at work and how they affect your health and safety.

OSHA and the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) enforce and write rules on how employers tell you about these hazards.

In 2012, OSHA updated the HazCom Standard to follow the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals, also known as GHS. Key updates include:

• Required chemicals to be grouped together based on their physical and health hazards.
• Standardized shipping labels for chemicals.
• Created the Safety Data Sheet (SDS), a more detailed and standardized version of the previous Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS).

Both HazCom and GHS consist of six (6) core elements:

1. Hazard identification and classification
2. Inventory or list of chemicals
3. Labels for chemicals
4. Safety Data Sheets (SDS)
5. Employee training
6. Written HazCom program

The following items are exempt or excluded from the HazCom Standard:

1. Food, drugs, alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and cosmetics for an employee’s personal or medical use (including use during or outside of work hours at a job site).
2. Medical & Veterinary Devices regulated by the FDA & USDA.
3. Hazardous waste as defined in the Solid Waste Disposal Act, including Universal Waste such as:
   • Lamps and light bulbs (e.g., CFLs, halon, LEDs, etc.)
   • Mercury-containing equipment (e.g., thermostats and switches)
   • Batteries (e.g., Lithium-Ion, lead-acid, etc.)
4. Hazardous substances being removed from a site following the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.).
5. Food, Drugs, Cosmetics, and Medical Devices regulated under labeling requirements set by the FDA & USDA.
6. Nuisance particulates (provided the chemical manufacturer or importer proves they cause no physical or health hazard to workers).
7. Biological hazards.
8. Radiation (ionizing & non-ionizing).

All containers of hazardous chemicals must be labeled by the manufacturer or importer according to the Hazard Communication Standard and Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS).

The label created and used by the manufacturer is called the shipping label. Chemicals that are transferred to secondary containers must also be labeled with a workplace label or GHS label. Shipped containers are the original container for a product or chemical and must display a GHS label.

Example of a GHS Shipping Label

A GHS Label must contain all of the following:

1. Name of the chemical or product
2. Signal word – these are "Danger", "Warning", or "Caution"