This resource does not replace the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and its regulations and should not be used as or considered legal advice. MLITSD Inspectors will apply and enforce the OHSA and its regulations based upon the facts as they may find them in a workplace.

Overview

Employers, supervisors and workers all play a role in taking responsibility for health and safety in the workplace. Understanding your duties, responsibilities and rights under the following laws is integral to ensuring all workers in auto body shops stay safe and healthy at work:

The goal is to prevent workplace injuries, illnesses and deaths.

Purpose

Auto body shop employers and workers should review our Isocyanates in auto body shops

page to increase their knowledge about measures to prevent worker exposure to isocyanates.

Employers must take steps to minimize or prevent exposure to isocyanates, to keep their workplaces healthy and safe. If the body shop uses a material that contains isocyanates (even if it is not listed in Table 1 of the Designated Substances Regulation) the workers must be protected and the employer must have an isocyanate control program.

We designed the checklist below to help employers assess:

  • equipment
  • work practices
  • hygiene practices and facilities
  • records of the length of time workers work with isocyanate-containing materials
  • medical surveillance
  • worker and supervisor training

How to use this occupational health and safety (OHS) checklist

We encourage employers and workers to work through this checklist together. Using this self-audit tool, employers can identify opportunities to prevent or reduce exposure to isocyanates and take steps to prevent occupational illnesses resulting from the exposure.

OHS Checklist

Part A: Use of isocyanates in the workplace

Include:

  • company name
  • address
  • telephone number
  • name, address and telephone number of examining/supervising physician of the isocyanates medical surveillance program (see the Code for Medical Surveillance for Designated Substances in Ontario Regulation 490/09 (2019) referred to in the Designated Substances Regulation)
  • names of isocyanate products used in the shop
  • employees working with isocyanates – names and job titles
  • estimated or actual number of hours per week
  • names and titles of other employees not working with isocyanates who may be exposed
  • signatures of employer representative and worker representative

Part B: Isocyanates work practices

Number Work practice This work practice takes place in the shop
1 Is spraying with materials containing isocyanates, including primers, done inside a booth designed for paint spraying and equipped with mechanical ventilation vented to the atmosphere? Yes/No

Comments
2 Is Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) training provided to the workers? Yes/No

Comments
3 Are Safety Data Sheets (SDSs) reviewed and used for the isocyanate material used in the shop? Yes/No

Comments
4 Does the spray painter wear a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Type C airline respirator with a full facepiece, hood or loose fitting facepiece/visor operated in positive-pressure mode or a self-contained breathing apparatus with a full facepiece operated in positive-pressure mode? Yes/No

Comments
5 If a tight fitting facepiece is selected, is fit testing conducted? Yes/No

Comments
6 Is the supply air system suitable for supplying breathing air and of sufficient capacity to maintain a positive pressure and adequate air flow in each respirator or hood? Yes/No

Comments
7 Is the air supplied to respirators or hoods taken from a clean air area?

If compressed air is used from an oil lubricated compressor, does it meet Table 1 of CSA Z180.1-13 (R2018) for compressed air? Is it tested every six months? Is the in-line carbon monoxide monitor calibrated according to the manufacturer’s specifications? For more information consult Reg. 490, Section 26.2 (5)

 Yes/No

Comments
8 Is the booth ventilation equipment, such as fan and filters, maintained and operated in such a manner that the face velocity of the booth meets design specifications? Yes/No

Comments
9 Is the booth fan kept running after spraying has ended until all overspray and vapours have been exhausted? Yes/No

Comments
10 Does the spray painter keep the respirator on until all overspray and vapours have been exhausted? Yes/No

Comments
11 Do workers wear eye protection, gloves and clothing that protect the skin while handling or spraying materials that contain isocyanates? Yes/No

Comments
12 Are all workers working with isocyanate materials offered medical surveillance in accordance with the Code for Medical Surveillance for Designated Substances in Ontario Regulation 490/09 (2019) under the OHSA? Yes/No

Comments
13 Does the shop have an eyewash fountain to rinse the eyes, as per Regulation 851 - Industrial Establishments Regulation section 124? Yes/No

Comments
14 Are soap and water and, if possible, a mixture of half-and-half isopropyl alcohol and water available to rub splashes of isocyanate materials off the skin? Yes/No

Comments
15 Is water or a mixture of nine parts water, one part isopropyl alcohol and some liquid detergent available in the shop? Yes/No

Comments
16 Is an absorbent material such as saw-dust available in the shop? Yes/No

Comments
17 Is there a record kept of the length of time workers are exposed to isocyanates other than those listed in Table 1 of the Designated Substances Regulation? Yes/No

Comments
18 Are gloves and coveralls selected for the conditions of use? Are the safety data sheets (SDS) and personal protective equipment (PPE) supplier or manufacturer consulted when selecting the PPE? Yes/No

Comments
19 If isocyanate material gets in the eyes, are the eyes flushed with clear lukewarm water, occasionally lifting the eyelids for 15 minutes? Is medical help obtained right away? Yes/No

Comments
20 If the hardener gets on the skin, is the skin washed with soap and water, and rubbed with a mixture of half-and-half isopropyl alcohol and water, or at least rinsed with lots of water? (The mixture must not be used to flush the eyes.) Yes/No

Comments
21 Is clothing that is splashed with isocyanate not worn even if it is dry? Yes/No

Comments
22 Is clothing contaminated with isocyanate removed and soaked in a mixture of nine parts of water and one part of isopropyl alcohol with some detergent for at least 15 minutes to neutralize splashes on the clothing? Or is the contaminated clothing at least soaked in water for a few hours? Yes/No

Comments
23 In case of hardener spray inhalation, is the worker moved to a clean air area, and is medical attention obtained at once? (The effects of inhalation sometimes do not show for hours.) Yes/No

Comments
24 Are eating, drinking and smoking prohibited in isocyanate working areas? Yes/No

Comments

Contact us

If you need more information, please contact us at 1-877-202-0008 on Monday to Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., or by email at webohs@ontario.ca.