SITUATION

Okay, Canada, it’s your turn. Here’s a version of the above quiz that’s adapted for WHMIS.

A building supply company in Ontario has to keep thousands of MSDS’. Maintaining a paper system has become a hassle. Suppliers are constantly making changes to their MSDS’ and furnishing MSDS’ for new products. And every time the company gets a new or updated MSDS, it has to take apart and then reassemble the MSDS binder. So the company wants to computerize the MSDS’ by making them available on a CD-ROM that workers can access on computers in the workplace. The company believes that the new system will not only be easier to maintain and update, but also simplify workers’ access to MSDS’.

QUESTION

To ensure that its computerized MSDS access system complies with WHMIS, the company must do all of the following EXCEPT:

A. Make sure all workers have access to computers and that their computers are kept in working order.

B. Train all workers and members of the JHSC how to use the computers and CD-ROM to access the MSDS’.

C. Make hard copies of the MSDS’ available upon the request of a worker.

D. Provide each worker his or her own computer.

ANSWER

D. The company must meet the first three conditions above, but it doesn’t have to provide individual workers their own computers.

EXPLANATION

Although WHMIS requirements vary slightly from province to province, the rule regarding computerized MSDS access is basically the same throughout Canada: You can do it as long as MSDS’ are “readily available” to workers. Most provinces have specific computer access requirements in their WHMIS guidelines. (We’ve cited three examples below.) However, no province requires employers to provide each and every worker their own computer. That’s why D is the right answer.

WHY WRONG ANSWERS ARE WRONG

A is wrong because although workers don’t need their own individual computers, they all need access to at least one computer in the workplace. It’s also true that the employer must take all reasonable steps to maintain the computers in working order. Otherwise, a computer shutdown might cut off access to MSDS’ for every worker in the company.

B is wrong because in order for MSDS’ to be “readily available,” all workers (and members of the JHSC) must be trained to use the computer system to access them. A worker shouldn’t have to ask a supervisor or designated co-worker to get him an MSDS because he doesn’t know how to do so himself using the computer system.

C is wrong because employers do, in fact, have to make hardcopies of an MSDS available to any worker who requests it. (Federally-regulated employers and those in Nova Scotia must also provide hard copies of MSDS’ upon the JHSC’s request.) Thus, you can’t have a completely paperless system or throw away your MSDS binders.

Citations:

Ontario WHMIS Guidelines: www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/hs/whmis/whmis_4c.html

Federal WHMIS Guidelines: www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/legisl/msdss.html

BC WHMIS Guidelines: www.worksafebc.com/publications/health_and_safety/by_topic/assets/pdf/whmis.pdf

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