"We can't read 'em"

"We use Carbon disulphide where I work. We are given cotton masks to wear. Is that enough?"

"What do you know about it?" I ask. "Do you have a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for Carbon disulphide?" It turns out many of the containers in this factory do not even have labels. Most that do have labels are in English, Japanese or German.

"Well, let's find out about the hazards of using Carbon disulphide" Phil Drew suggests. Fortunately the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has recently translated MSDS into Thai, so we can all see what hazards face the workers in this factory.

"Hey", says the unionist who asked about the chemical, "now I know why people are always complaining of being dizzy, having headaches, getting red eyes and skin. It's this chemical. And look, it says there should be local exhaust and breathing apparatus. What is local exhaust?"

"Okay, we've identified a hazard. Let's use the hazard management strategy to try to deal with it." 

"A risk assessment will show a high priority for action on the chemical. As for measurement, perhaps there should be a measuring device in the area to warn of any leakages after we have done what we can to control the hazard".

Firstly, we need to consider Engineering solutions. Can we eliminate the use of the chemical, or find a safer substitute? If neither of these can we isolate the chemical?"

"It says here it should be in a closed system. What does that mean?" 

"Isolate it".

"We had a fire in that section a while ago. Nobody knew what caused it. Maybe it was this carbon disulphide". Well the MSDS says "NO open flames, NO sparks, and NO smoking. NO contact with hot surfaces".

Secondly, we need to consider Administrative solutions. These include safe work instructions which tell anyone who uses the chemical how to do so safely. That means the Supervisor, store-workers and the Training officer as well, and the Clinic staff and the Emergency crew. It involves keeping good records and maybe rotating workers into other jobs. In addition there should be a checklist for and regular inspection of the areas where the carbon disulphide is stored and used.

Thirdly, we need proper training of everybody including the Purchasing officer so that they make sure there are MSDS for every chemical and that they look for safer substitutes; that they don't go for the cheapest source in unlabelled containers.

Finally, some workers may have to wear PPE. We need to know what PPE and how to wear it properly, how to keep it clean and functioning, and when to replace it. 

"What PPE do we need to protect workers from Carbon disulphide?"

"It says here:

•  Good ventilation.
•  Local exhaust.
•  Breathing protection. 
•  Protective gloves. 
•  Protective clothing. 
•  Safety goggles, face shield, or eye protection in combination with breathing protection.
•  Do not eat, drink, or smoke during work".

"So it is pretty nasty stuff".

"What should you do about it?"

"Well, we could make this known to the union executive and make sure that it is properly discussed in the joint occupational health, safety and environment committee".

"What about the workers who are already exposed every day?"

"Maybe we should refuse to work on it until there is a report. The process is only used a few days a month".

"Start with a meeting of the workers in that section. Make sure they know about the hazards of Carbon disulphide. But don't forget there are many other chemicals in your factory. Start a campaign to find out about them all. You will need MSDS for all of them.

If you really want to know all there is to know about MSDS try this Tutorial about them at http://ww.ilpi.com/msds/faq/parta.html#tutorial

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