All employees working on site (such as but not limited to equipment operators, general laborers and others) exposed to hazardous substances, health hazards, or safety hazards and their supervisors and management responsible for the site shall receive training meeting the requirements of this paragraph before they are permitted to engage in hazardous waste operations that could expose them to hazardous substances, safety, or health hazards, and they shall receive review training as specified in this paragraph.
1910.120(e)(1)(ii)
Employees shall not be permitted to participate in or supervise field activities until they have been trained to a level required by their job function and responsibility.
1910.120(e)(2)
Elements to be covered. The training shall thoroughly cover the following:
1910.120(e)(2)(i)
Names of personnel and alternates responsible for site safety and health;
1910.120(e)(2)(ii)
Safety, health and other hazards present on the site;
1910.120(e)(2)(iii)
Use of PPE;
1910.120(e)(2)(iv)
Work practices by which the employee can minimize risks from hazards;
1910.120(e)(2)(v)
Safe use of engineering controls and equipment on the site;
1910.120(e)(2)(vi)
Medical surveillance requirements including recognition of symptoms and signs which might indicate over exposure to hazards; and
1910.120(e)(2)(vii)
The contents of paragraphs (G) through (J) of the site safety and health plan set forth in paragraph (b)(4)(ii) of this section.
1910.120(e)(3) Initial training.
1910.120(e)(3)(i)
General site workers (such as equipment operators, general laborers and supervisory personnel) engaged in hazardous substance removal or other activities which expose or potentially expose workers to hazardous substances and health hazards shall receive a minimum of 40 hours of instruction off the site, and a minimum of three days actual field experience under the direct supervision of a trained experienced supervisor.
1910.120(e)(3)(ii)
Workers on site only occasionally for a specific limited task (such as, but not limited to, ground water monitoring, land surveying, or geophysical surveying) and who are unlikely to be exposed over permissible exposure limits and published exposure limits shall receive a minimum of 24 hours of instruction off the site, and the minimum of one day actual field experience under the direct supervision of a trained, experienced supervisor.
1910.120(e)(3)(iii)
Workers regularly on site who work in areas which have been monitored and fully characterized indicating that exposures are under permissible exposure limits and published exposure limits where respirators are not necessary, and the characterization indicates that there are no health hazards or the possibility of an emergency developing, shall receive a minimum of 24 hours of instruction off the site, and the minimum of one day actual field experience under the direct supervision of a trained, experienced supervisor.
1910.120(e)(3)(iv)
Workers with 24 hours of training who are covered by paragraphs (e)(3)(ii) and (e)(3)(iii) of this section, and who become general site workers or who are required to wear respirators, shall have the additional 16 hours and two days of training necessary to total the training specified in paragraph (e)(3)(i).
1910.120(e)(4)
Management and supervisor training. On-site management and supervisors directly responsible for or who supervise employees engaged in hazardous waste operations shall receive 40 hours initial and three days of supervised field experience (the training may be reduced to 24 hours and one day if the only area of their responsibility is employees covered by paragraphs (e)(3)(ii) and (e)(3)(iii) and at least eight additional hours of specialized training at the time of job assignment on such topics as, but no limited to, the employer's safety and health program, personal protective equipment program, spill containment program, and health hazard monitoring procedure and techniques.
1910.120(e)(5)
Qualifications for trainers. Trainers shall be qualified to instruct employees about the subject matter that is being presented in training. Such trainers shall have satisfactorily completed a training program for teaching the subjects they are expected to teach, or they shall have the academic credentials and instructional experience necessary for teaching the subjects. Instructors shall demonstrate competent instructional skills and knowledge of the applicable subject matter.
1910.120(e)(6)
Training certification. Employees and supervisors that have received and successfully completed the training and field experience specified in paragraphs (e)(1) through (e)(4) of this section shall be certified by their instructor or the head instructor and trained supervisor as having completed the necessary training. A written certificate shall be given to each person so certified. Any person who has not been so certified or who does not meet the requirements of paragraph (e)(9) of this section shall be prohibited from engaging in hazardous waste operations.
1910.120(e)(7)
Emergency response. Employees who are engaged in responding to hazardous emergency situations at hazardous waste clean-up sites that may expose them to hazardous substances shall be trained in how to respond to such expected emergencies.
1910.120(e)(8)
Refresher training. Employees specified in paragraph (e)(1) of this section, and managers and supervisors specified in paragraph (e)(4) of this section, shall receive eight hours of refresher training annually on the items specified in paragraph (e)(2) and/or (e)(4) of this section, any critique of incidents that have occurred in the past year that can serve as training examples of related work, and other relevant topics.
1910.120(e)(9)
Equivalent training. Employers who can show by documentation or certification that an employee's work experience and/or training has resulted in training equivalent to that training required in paragraphs (e)(1) through (e)(4) of this section shall not be required to provide the initial training requirements of those paragraphs to such employees and shall provide a copy of the certification or documentation to the employee upon request. However, certified employees or employees with equivalent training new to a site shall receive appropriate, site specific training before site entry and have appropriate supervised field experience at the new site. Equivalent training includes any academic training or the training that existing employees might have already received from actual hazardous waste site experience.
For the most current listing of requirements, go to OSHA's website.
