Sec. 820.4. Training

(a) The education and training program required by Labor Law, section 878, need not be provided to a former employee or an employee on leave or lay-off unless or until such employee returns to work.

(b) Employees are entitled to the education and training required by Labor Law, section 878, if they are routinely exposed to any toxic substance as “routine exposure” is defined in section 820.2(e) of this Part.

(c) Time, location and manner of training.

(1) The education and training program required by Labor Law, section 878, must be provided by qualified trainers during employees' regular working hours, with no loss of pay, in a location convenient to the job site of the employee(s) receiving such training.

(2) The education and training program required by Labor Law, section 878, must be tailored to the individual workplace environment and must include an oral explanation to accompany any written material. If a substantial number of the employees in any particular education and training group speak a particular language other than English as their primary language and cannot comprehend an English-language education and training program, the education and training program must be provided to such employees in that language as well as in English.

(d) Substantive information to be provided.

The information required to be provided to employees by Labor Law, section 878(3)(a)-(j) includes:

(1) such introductory material as is necessary for employees to understand the information provided pursuant to Labor Law, section 878(3)(a)-(j), including but not limited to:

(i) routes by which toxic substances enter the body;

(ii) target organs or various toxins, and how toxic substances reach such organs;

(iii) the retention and accumulation of toxic substances in the body;

(iv) the concept of synergistic, additive and antagonistic interactions between substances whereby their toxic effects may be multiplied or otherwise increased;

(v) the concept of a biological threshhold level of exposure for the effects of some toxic substances and the absence of any threshhold exposure level for other toxic substances, such as chemical carcinogenicity; and

(vi) the inability of the body to reverse some toxic effects.

(2) information about any toxic substance known to be present in a mixture, provided that either:

(i) the substance comprises, as an intentional ingredient or as an impurity, one percent or more by weight of the mixture; or

(ii) even if the substance is present only in trace amounts in the mixture, the toxic properties of the substance are such that the mixture may be hazardous upon exposure because of the presence of the substance. An example of this situation would be the presence of 2, 3, 7, 8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin in the herbicide 2, 4, 5-T;

(3) any Federal, State and local occupational safety and health laws, ordinances, regulations, or other requirements or standards for the handling and use of any toxic substance found in the employees' workplace;

(4) how to read an MSDS or chemical data sheet;

(5) the use and functioning of cleanup, firefighting and personal protective equipment, in both ordinary and special use conditions, and any workplace policy for when such equipment is to be used; and

(6) the sources from which employees may obtain further information concerning the toxic substances in their workplace, the hazardous consequences of such substances, and the available protective measures, including the addresses and telephone numbers of the nearest offices of the agencies listed in Labor Law, section 876(3).

(e) Updating the education and training program.

(1) Before any new toxic substance may be introduced into the workplace, an employer must provide employees with the required education and training for that substance.

(2) Upon the receipt of information indicating that a substance already in use in the workplace is toxic, an employer shall promptly provide employees with the required education and training for that substance.

(f) Employees' rights.

The education and training program for employees required by Labor Law, section 878, shall include the following information:

(1) the employees' right to notice and information, the type of information to be provided, and the procedures for obtaining such information, under Labor Law, section 876, and these regulations;

(2) the employees' right to refuse to work with a toxic substance for which a request for information was made but not responded to within 72 hours of the request; the right not to lose pay or forfeit any other privilege until a proper response to the request is received; and the right not to be discharged, disciplined, penalized, or discriminated against for exercising any right under Labor Law, article 28, or these regulations; and that complaints regarding violations of Labor Law, article 2, 8 or these regulations may be made to either the New York State Department of Labor or the Attorney General of the State of New York;

(3) the employees' right to education and training, the specific information required to be provided through such education and training, and the manner in which such education and training is to be provided under Labor Law, section 878, and these regulations; and

(4) the employer's recordkeeping obligations and employees' right to examine and copy such records under Labor Law, section 879, and these regulations.

(g) Recordkeeping.

Employers shall maintain a written record of training given to employees. This record shall describe the training, the date or dates on which it was given, the names of the employees in attendance at each session, and the person(s) conducting the training. These records shall be maintained by the employer for the duration of each employee's employment and shall be made available upon request to the employee, his or her representative, the New York State Department of Labor and the Attorney General of the State of New York.