Workers Health & Safety Centre

GHS WHMIS training in French now available

WHMIS pictograms
The Workers Health and Safety Centre (WHSC) now offers GHS WHMIS training delivered in French to help workplaces comply with changing WHMIS obligations.
 
WHMIS is designed to provide workers, supervisors and other workplace parties with critical health and safety information about hazardous products used, stored, handled or disposed of in the workplace. Changes to federal WHMIS-related law, and supporting provincial and territorial regulation, are altering the way this information is delivered. 

WHSC’s Globally-Harmonized WHMIS training program, now available in French as well as English, are essential resources designed to help workplace parties understand these changes and assist employers in meeting their extensive training obligations.
 

WHMIS transition

GHS WHMIS changes are designed to standardize, on a global scale, the hazardous product information communication system. Examples of changes include:
  • new hazard classification rules and hazard classes,
  • pictograms replacing hazard symbols (and are required on SDSs and labels),
  • safety data sheets (SDSs—16-section format) replacing MSDSs (9-section format), new content requirements on product labels including standard signal words (warning or danger), pictograms and both a hazard and precautionary statement, and
  • new SDS and label updating requirements. 

Employers must complete transition from original WHMIS to GHS WHMIS by December 1, 2018. To achieve this, for instance, employers will be required to ensure hazardous products in the workplace meet the new labelling requirements and that up-to-date SDSs are readily available to workers and members of joint health and safety committees or worker representatives. 
 
Manufacturers and importers of hazardous products must transition to the new GHS WHMIS by June 1, 2018. Distributors of these products have until September 1, 2018. 

Employer training obligations

This transition also places additional WHMIS-related training obligations on employers as products are already making their way into workplaces with the new standardized information. During transition employers must train workers in both original WHMIS and GHS WHMIS. In addition to the new French Globally-Harmonized WHMIS training, the WHSC offers original WHMIS training in French.
 
GHS WHMIS can become the sole focus of worker training only when all products with the original WHMIS labels and MSDSs are no longer used in the workplace (which must be the case by December 1, 2018). 
 
In addition to the training obligations mentioned above, WHMIS regulation also requires employers to provide workplace-specific training to workers, including product-specific procedures for the safe use, storage, handling and disposal of a hazardous product and what to do in case of an emergency situation.

WHSC WHMIS training supports compliance

Like all WHSC programs, our WHMIS-related training programs apply adult learning principles to ensure learning is achieved. And this is important for employers as Ontario law requires that training results in workers being able to use the information to protect their health and safety [s. 7(3), WHMIS Reg.].

Want to know more about GHS WHMIS?

Transitioning to Globally-harmonized WHMIS: An Overview
Globally-harmonized WHMIS wallet card English French
Globally-harmonized WHMIS poster  English French
Globally-harmonized WHMIS training product sheet English French
Original WHMIS training product sheet

Note: If original WHMIS labels and MSDSs are still used in your workplace along with new labels and SDSs, both the new Globally-harmonized WHMIS poster and the original WHMIS poster should be posted.

Want information about French or English classroom-based Globally Harmonized or Original WHMIS training or want further clarification about the transition to GHS WHMIS?

Call:    1-888-869-7950 and ask to speak to a training service representative
Visit:   www.whsc.on.ca
Email: contactus@whsc.on.ca 

Want to register for Globally Harmonized WHMIS E-class?

Want to download a French flyer explaining basic worker health and safety rights?