Who must post the California Lead Warning Sign?
California Code of Regulations, Title 8, Section 5198(m) requires employers to ensure that employees are informed of hazardous chemicals in the workplace including exposures to lead in excess of the Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) by posting the California Lead Warning Sign.
- Section 5198 applies to all occupational exposure to lead, except the construction industry and agricultural operations.
- The standard applies to metallic lead, all inorganic lead compounds, and organic lead soaps.
- The standard sets a permissible exposure limit (PEL) of fifty micrograms of lead per cubic meter of air (50µg/m3), averaged over an 8-hour workday.
- Where any employee is exposed to lead above the permissible exposure limit, an employer must implement engineering, work practice, administrative, to the extent feasible, to reduce and maintain employee exposure to lead.
What are the Content and Display Requirements of the Lead Warning Sign?
As part of the employer’s responsibility to communicate hazards in the workplace pursuant to section 5198(m), an employer must post a specified Lead Warning Sign in each work area where the PEL is exceeded. The sign informs workers of the presence of lead and warns of potential damage to fertility, the unborn child and the central nervous system damage. It informs workers not to eat, drink or smoke in the area.
The regulation provides that employers:
- must ensure that no statement appears on or near the required sign which contradicts or detracts from the meaning of the required sign;
- must ensure that required sign is illuminated and cleaned as necessary so that the legend is readily visible; and
- may use signs required by other statutes, regulations, or ordinances in addition to, or in combination with, signs required by the regulation.
The lead warning sign is available in English or Spanish.