WHMIS 2015 case studies
WHMIS 2015 · Put your knowledge to work in context.
WHMIS 2015 - the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System aligned with the Globally Harmonized System - is Canada's workplace hazard communication standard. It is not a single national certificate exam; rather, workers, supervisors, and employers must be educated on it, and many employers and training providers verify that education with a written assessment. The WHMIS 2015 case studies are 5 cases and about 2,687 words.
1Repackaging Imported Acetone: Who Is the Supplier?
A small Canadian company, Northern Coatings, imports 200 L drums of acetone from a US manufacturer and repackages the solvent into 4 L metal cans for sale to autobody shops in Manitoba. The US supplier provides a HazCom 2012 safety data sheet and an English-only label with the US company's address and phone number, the flame pictogram, signal word Danger, and the hazard statement 'Highly flammable liquid and vapour.' The drums also carry US DOT flammable liquid labels.
477 words, about 2 min2Floor Stripper: Flash Point 65°C and a Corrosion Pictogram
A contract cleaning company is assessing a new floor stripper before using it in a grocery store. The supplier's technical bulletin gives a closed-cup flash point of 65°C and states that the product causes severe skin burns and serious eye damage in animal tests.
576 words, about 3 min3Decanting Disinfectant: Is a Handwritten Label Enough?
At a 180-room hotel, a housekeeper fills a 750 mL spray bottle from a 4 L supplier-labelled container of a chlorine-based washroom disinfectant. She writes 'Bleach - do not drink' on the spray bottle with a permanent marker and leaves it on her cart.
543 words, about 3 min4A 2017 SDS, Missing Section Detail, and a Night-Shift Worker
A metal fabrication shop introduces a new parts-washing solvent. The supplier provides a 16-section SDS dated 2017.
565 words, about 3 min5No SDS at the Water Treatment Plant: Right to Know or Right to Refuse?
At a municipal water treatment plant, a 20 L pail of a new coagulant arrives with a legible supplier label showing a corrosion pictogram, signal word Danger, and the statement 'Causes severe skin burns and eye damage.' The supplier's packing slip says the SDS will follow by email 'within two weeks.' The plant manager tells a utility operator to start dosing the product that afternoon because the old coagulant is finished. The operator refuses, saying WHMIS gives a right to know and there is no SDS.
526 words, about 3 min