School Board Policy 407 -
Employee Right To Know - Exposure To Hazardous Substances

I. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide school district employees a place of employment and conditions of employment free from recognized hazards that are likely to cause death or serious injury or harm.

II. General Statement of Policy

The policy of this school district is to provide information and training to employees who may be “routinely exposed” to a hazardous substance, harmful physical agent, infectious agent, or blood-borne pathogen.

III. Definitions

A. “Blood-borne pathogen” means pathogenic microorganisms that are present in human blood and can cause disease in humans. This definition includes, but is not limited to, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

B. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Labor and Industry.

C. "Harmful physical agent" means a physical agent determined by the Commissioner as a part of the standard for that agent to present a significant risk to worker health or safety or imminent danger of death or serious physical harm to an employee. This definition includes but is not limited to radiation, whether ionizing or nonionizing.

D. "Hazardous substance" means a chemical or substance, or mixture of chemicals and substances, which:

1. Is regulated by the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration under the Code of Federal Regulations; or

2. Is either toxic or highly toxic; an irritant; corrosive; a strong oxidizer; a strong sensitizer; combustible; either flammable or extremely flammable; dangerously reactive; pyrophoric; pressure-generating; compressed gas; carcinogenic; teratogenic; mutagenic; a reproductive toxic agent; or that otherwise, according to generally accepted documented medical or scientific evidence, may cause substantial acute or chronic personal injury or illness during or as a direct result of any customary or reasonably foreseeable accidental or intentional exposure to the chemical or substance; or

3. Is determined by the Commissioner as a part of the standard for the chemical or substance or mixture of chemicals and substances to present a significant risk to worker health and safety or imminent danger of death or serious physical harm to an employee as a result of foreseeable use, handling, accidental spill, exposure, or contamination.

E. "Infectious agent" means a communicable bacterium, rickettsia, parasite, virus, or fungus determined by the Commissioner by rule, with approval of the Commissioner of Health, which according to documented medical or scientific evidence causes substantial acute or chronic illness or permanent disability as a foreseeable and direct result of any routine exposure to the infectious agent. Infectious agent does not include an agent in or on the body of a patient before diagnosis.

F. "Routinely exposed" means that there is a reasonable potential for exposure during the normal course of assigned work or when an employee is assigned to work in an area where a hazardous substance has been spilled.

IV. Target Job Categories

Annual Training will be provided to all full-time and part-time employees who are “routinely exposed” to a hazardous substance, harmful physical agent, infectious agent or blood-borne pathogen as set forth above.

V. Training Schedule

Training will be provided to employees before beginning a job assignment as follows:

A. Any newly-hired employee assigned to a work area where he or she is determined to be routinely exposed under the guidelines above.

B. Any employee reassigned to a work area where he or she is determined to be routinely exposed under the above guidelines.

Legal References: 
Minn. Stat. Ch. 182 (Occupational Safety and Health)
Minn. Rule Ch. 5205 (Safety and Health Standards)
Minn. Rule Ch. 5206 (Employee Right to Know Standards)
29 C.F.R. § 1910.1050, App. B (Substance Technical Guidelines)

Cross References: 
WBLASB Policy 420 (Students and Employees with Communicable or Infectious Diseases)
WBLASB Policy 807 (Health and Safety)