Expert Advice: Risk assessing your products to prevent injury
Health and safety expert Nicola Walsh highlights the importance of proper storage and handling of chemicals in a salon environment.
In this article I wish to highlight the impact of poor housekeeping when it comes to chemicals in your business. The importance of only bringing chemicals into the workplace when there is a place to safely store them is key to good housekeeping in safety.
All salons are required to have a Safety Statement. This would include risk assessments on various equipment and activities in your business, including chemicals. Your risk assessment should identify the chemicals that pose a risk to your staff, clients and visitors and it should also provide a set of controls that have been implemented to mitigate or reduce the risk of injury to someone.
Examples of the most common chemicals used in beauty salons are acetone and isopropyl alcohol, which are volatile liquids. In warm conditions, such as a warm room or near a heater or sunlight, these chemicals evaporate creating a cloud of vapour in an enclosed space. Where large volumes are in a container, the warmth will create pressure inside the lid area of the container and on opening this, vapour can emit into the air and cause injury by way of allergic reactions, skin damage and chemical burns.
The requirements by law are:
- Store chemicals in smaller containers
- Chemicals must be stored away safely in cool dark place
- All chemicals are required to be labelled in their containers
- Safety Data Sheets are required to be held on file for all chemicals
- Staff must be trained/inducted to all this information
- Compile a list of chemicals in your salon
- Check the safety data sheets for storage and instructions
- Read the warnings and storage and use instructions
- Implement a culture of always using PPE
- Make sure you have enough ventilation
- Ensure you have procedures in place for how to deal with an injury
- Have a full first aid kit to hand
I have previously provided expert witness reports for these types of injuries caused by exposure to chemicals. The injuries can be mild, and they can be very serious. We all know that clients may not give full disclosure in consultation and we may think because they have signed a Consultation Form it's OK, but I assure you it is not. Should injury occur, it will certainly put you in a stronger position if you have the correct legal documentation on record and show that you have adhered to the regulations.
In the event of a case such as chemical burns, you will be required to produce your Safety Statement and Risk Assessments, as well as qualifications and training records and this is where many businesses fall down.
Here are some Health & Safety Authority guides that you should familiarise yourself with:
Nicola Walsh is a Beauty Business Owner, Health & Safety Consultant, Expert Witness, and founder of Ensure Health and Safety Ltd. She is also an All-Ireland Business All-Star.
