Worker Protection Standard

When handlers (except for commercial pesticide handling establishments) are on an agricultural establishment and, within the last 30 days, a pesticide has been applied on the establishment or a restricted-entry interval has been in effect, the handler employer must display pesticide safety information. A safety poster must be displayed that conveys basic pesticide safety concepts, including how to help keep pesticides from entering your body.

At a minimum, the following points must be conveyed:

1. Avoid getting on your skin or into your body any pesticides that may be on plants and soil, in irrigation water or drifting from nearby applications;
2. Wash before eating, drinking, using chewing gum or tobacco, or using the toilet;
3. Wear work clothing that protects the body from pesticide residues (long-sleeved shirts, long pants, shoes and socks, and a hat or scarf);
4. Wash/shower with soap and water, shampoo hair and put on clean clothes after work;
5. Wash work clothes separately from other clothes before wearing them again;
6. Wash immediately in the nearest clean water if pesticides are spilled or sprayed on the body. As soon as possible, shower, shampoo and change into clean clothes; and
7. Follow directions about keeping out of treated or restricted areas.

The posting must also contain a statement that there are Federal rules to protect workers and handlers, including a requirement for safety training. The name, address and telephone number of the nearest emergency medical care facility must be on or displayed close to the safety poster. The information must be displayed in a central location where it can be readily seen and read by handlers.

The handler employer must assure that before the handler uses any equipment for mixing, loading, transferring or applying pesticides, the handler is instructed in the safe operation of such equipment, including, when relevant, chemigation safety requirements and drift avoidance. The handler employer must assure that, before each day of use, equipment used for mixing, loading, transferring or applying pesticides is inspected for leaks, clogging and worn or damaged parts, and any damaged equipment is repaired or replaced.

Before allowing any person to repair, clean or adjust equipment that has been used to mix, load, transfer or apply pesticides, the handler employer must assure that pesticide residues have been removed from the equipment, unless the person doing the cleaning, repairing or adjusting is a handler employed by the agricultural or commercial pesticide handling establishment. If pesticide residue removal is not feasible, the handler employer must assure that the person who repairs, cleans or adjusts such equipment is informed:

1. That such equipment may be contaminated with pesticides;
2. Of the potentially harmful effects of exposure to pesticides; and
3. Of the correct way to handle such equipment.

Any person who performs tasks as a pesticide handler must use the clothing and personal protective equipment specified on the labeling for use of the product. Personal protective equipment (PPE) means devices and apparel that are worn to protect the body from contact with pesticides or pesticide residues, such as, coveralls, chemical-resistant suits, chemical-resistant gloves, chemical-resistant footwear, respiratory protection devices, chemical-resistant aprons, chemical-resistant headgear and protective eyewear. Long-sleeved shirts, short-sleeved shirts, long pants, short pants, shoes, socks and other items of work clothing are not considered personal protective equipment, although pesticide labeling may require such work clothing be worn during some activities.

When personal protective equipment is specified by the labeling of any pesticide for any handling activity, the handler employer must provide the appropriate personal protective equipment in clean and operating condition to the handler.

During any handling activity, the handler employer must provide for handlers decontamination supplies for washing off pesticides and pesticide residues. The handler employer must provide handlers with enough water for routine washing, for emergency eyeflushing and for washing the entire body in case of an emergency. At all times when the water is available to handlers, the handler employer must assure that it is of a quality and temperature that will not cause illness or injury when it contacts the skin or eyes or if swallowed.

When water stored in a tank is to be used for mixing pesticides, it must not be used for decontamination or eye flushing, unless the tank is equipped with properly functioning valves or other mechanisms that prevent movement of pesticides into the tank. The handler employer must provide soap and single-use towels in quantities sufficient to meet handlers' needs. The handler employer must provide one clean change of clothing, such as coveralls, for use in an emergency.

To provide for emergency eyeflushing, the handler employer must assure that at least one pint of water is immediately available to each handler who is performing tasks for which the pesticide labeling requires protective eyewear. At the end of any exposure period, the handler employer must provide at the site where handlers remove personal protective equipment, soap, clean towels and a sufficient amount of water so the handlers may wash thoroughly. The decontamination supplies must be located together and be reasonably accessible to, and not more than 1/4 mile from, each handler during the handling activity.

If there is reason to believe that a person has been poisoned or injured by exposure to pesticides as a result of that employment, such as exposures from handling tasks or from application, splash, spill, drift or pesticide residues, the handler employer must make available to that person prompt transportation from the place of employment or the handling site to an appropriate emergency medical facility. The handler employee must provide to that person or to treating medical personnel, promptly upon request, any obtainable information on:

1. Product name, EPA registration number and active ingredients of any product to which that person might have been exposed;
2. Antidote, first aid and other medical information from the product labeling;
3. The circumstances of handling of the pesticide; and
4. The circumstances of exposure of that person to the pesticide.

Before any handler performs any handling task, the handler employer must assure that the handler has been trained in accordance with the WPS requirements within the last 12 months. Certified pesticide applicators are considered trained if their certification is current.

General pesticide safety information must be presented to handlers either orally from written materials or audiovisually. The information must be presented in a manner that the handlers can understand, and the presenter must respond to handlers' questions. The person who conducts the training must meet at least one of the following criteria:

1. Be currently certified as an applicator of restricted-use pesticides; or
2. Be currently designated as a trainer of certified applicators or pesticide handlers by a State, Federal or Tribal agency having jurisdiction; or
3. Have completed a pesticide safety train-the-trainer program approved by a State, Federal or Tribal agency having jurisdiction.

The pesticide safety training materials must convey the following information:

1. Format and meaning of information contained on pesticide labels and in labeling, including safety information such as precautionary statements about human health hazards;
2. Hazards of pesticides resulting from toxicity and exposure, including acute and chronic effects, delayed effects and sensitization;
3. Routes by which pesticides can enter the body;
4. Signs and symptoms of common types of pesticide poisoning;
5. Emergency first aid for pesticide injuries or poisonings;
6. How to obtain emergency medical care;
7. Routine and emergency decontamination procedures;
8. Need for, and appropriate use of, personal protective equipment;
9. Prevention, recognition and first aid treatment of heat-related illness;
10. Safety requirements for handling, transporting, storing and disposing of pesticides, including general procedures for spill cleanup;
11. Environmental concerns such as drift, runoff and wildlife hazards;
12. Warnings about taking pesticides or pesticide containers home; and
13. Rule requirements that must be followed by handler employers for the protection of handlers and other persons, including the prohibition against applying pesticides in a manner that will cause contact with workers or other persons, the requirement to use personal protective equipment, the provisions for training and decontamination and the protection against retaliatory acts.

A pesticide handler - anyone who is employed (including self-employed) for any type of compensation by an agricultural establishment or a commercial pesticide handling establishment that uses pesticides in the production of agricultural plants on a farm, forest, nursery or greenhouse, and is doing any of the following tasks:

1. Mixing, loading, transferring or applying pesticides;
2. Handling opened containers of pesticides;
3. Acting as a flagger;
4. Cleaning, handling, adjusting or repairing the parts of mixing, loading or application equipment that may contain pesticide residues;
5. Assisting with the application of pesticides, including incorporating the pesticide into the soil after the application has occurred;
6. Entering a greenhouse or other enclosed area after application and before the inhalation exposure level listed on the product labeling has been reached, or one of the WPS ventilation criteria has been met to:
   • Operate ventilation equipment,
   • Adjust or remove coverings, such as tarps, used in fumigation or
   • Check air concentration levels;
7. Entering a treated area outdoors after application of any soil fumigant to adjust or remove soil coverings, such as tarpaulins;
8. Performing tasks as a crop advisor:
   • During any pesticide application,
   • Before any inhalation exposure level or ventilation criteria listed in the labeling has been reached or one of the WPS ventilation criteria has been met or
   • During any restricted-entry interval; or
9. Disposing of pesticides or pesticide containers.