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The kids’ father works at a battery plant where there is a lot of lead. If he wears coveralls at work, he doesn’t bring lead home, right?
Not necessarily. Lead dust can be carried on shoes, hair, skin, or any other surface. This lead can get into your car or your home. Workers who work with or near lead should protect themselves at work with protective clothing. They should wear coveralls, gloves, goggles, and shoe and head coverings. By covering themselves, they protect those they live with by not bringing dust home. If anyone in your household works where there is lead, you should test your home and car for lead.
The federal agency responsible for enforcement of health and safety rules in the workplace is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA sets rules for some industries. For example, OSHA makes most factories give workers who use lead a place to shower and change clothes before going home from work. If you can shower at work, do so. If there is no place for you to shower before leaving work, be sure to shower and wash your hair as soon as you get home.
OSHA says that workers should not bring coveralls or other protective clothing worn at work home for washing. These rules keep workers from bringing dangerous dust home on their clothes. Unfortunately, OSHA rules don’t apply to all workplaces that use lead.
A worker who does bring coveralls or lead-covered clothing home to wash should vacuum the clothes at work with a HEPA filter (not regular) vacuum. (“HEPA” stands for high-efficiency particulate air filter or vacuum. Only HEPA filters or vacuums can pick up the very fine lead particles that cannot be seen.) The worker then should put the clothing in a nylon bag at work. Do not shake the clothes out at home, since any lead dust that stays on the clothing is dangerous to breathe. Wash the clothes with lead dust separately from other wash. Put the clothes in the washer gently to avoid stirring up the dust. Wash the bag, too. If you have your own washer, you might want to run another rinse cycle after you wash lead-covered clothes to get out any leftover lead.
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In what kinds of jobs do people need to worry about lead?
Some jobs are especially dangerous to workers. They are cutting steel, welding, working at a lead smelter, manufacturing batteries, taking out lead from batteries, working at a lead or brass foundry, repairing radiators, working at gun-firing ranges, removing old paint, machining and grinding lead alloys, working with scrap metal, and demolishing and renovating old houses and other buildings. Because welding, metal cutting, and demolition work is so dangerous, construction workers need to be very careful.
Also, people who paint ships and bridges may be painting with lead paint. Although lead paint was banned for home use in 1977, it may still be used on ships, bridges, and highway overpasses.
Workers exposed to lead should cover all body surfaces and use a respirator. The paper masks sold at hardware stores are not good enough for lead (although they are better than nothing). People working with lead should use a respirator approved by the CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) for toxic dusts, with a HEPA filter cartridge (color-coded purple).
The state agency responsible for worker safety is:
Occupational Health Service
New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services
P.O. Box 360
Trenton, NJ 08625-0360
(609) 984-1863
New Jersey also requires all doctors in the state to report adults with high blood lead levels to the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services. The report must include the patient’s work and home addresses.
Many labor unions also have information about worker safety and protection. For more information about your rights to be informed about hazardous materials in the place you work, and the protections that your employer must provide for you, you can contact:
AFL-CIO Department of Occupational Safety and Health
815 16th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
(202) 637-5366
NIOSH provides information about workplace lead hazards. NIOSH’s toll-free number is 1-800-35-NIOSH (1-800-356-4674).
The federal agency responsible for enforcement of health and safety rules in the workplace is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). New Jersey is in Region II. The office is at:
U.S. Department of Labor—OSHA
201 Varick Street, Room 670
New York, NY 10014
(212) 337-2378
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How can I find out if there are lead hazards where I work?
Employers must give the state detailed information about dangerous substances used at work. By law, this information is available to anyone asking. To find out what dangerous materials are being used at workplaces, call the Community Right to Know line at (609) 292-6714. Or you can write to:
Department of Environmental Protection
P.O. Box 402
401 E. State Street
Trenton, NJ 08625-0402
(609) 777-3373
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