S.I. No. 2/1976 - Factories (Lead Painting) Regulations, 1976

S.I. No. 2 of 1976.

FACTORIES (LEAD PAINTING) REGULATIONS, 1976

I, MICHAEL O'LEARY, Minister for Labour, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 6 , 20 , 71 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 and 99 of the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955), and the Labour (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1966 ( S.I. No. 164 of 1966 ), after consultation with the Minister for Health, and after due compliance with the provisions of the Third Schedule of that Act, hereby make as special regulations the following regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Factories (Lead Painting) Regulations, 1976, and shall come into operation on the 1st day of March, 1976.

2. In these Regulations—

"the Act" means the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955);

"approved" means approved for the time being by the Minister;

"lead paint" means any paint, paste, spray, stopping, filling or other material used in painting which, when treated in the manner prescribed in the Schedule to these Regulations, yields to an aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid, a quantity of soluble lead compound exceeding, when calculated as lead monoxide, five per cent, of the dry weight of the portion taken for analysis;

"inspector" means an inspector for the purposes of the Act;

"Minister" means the Minister for Labour;

"lead painting" means painting with lead paint and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly.

3. (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of this regulation, these Regulations shall apply to every factory and to every premises, place or ship in which lead painting is carried on and to which sections 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88 or 89 of the Act apply.

(2) These Regulations shall not apply to—

( a ) the lead painting of vehicles in a factory to which the Factories (Lead Painting of Vehicles) Regulations, 1976 ( S.I. No. 3 of 1976 ), apply, or;

( b ) any person who is occasionally employed in, or in connection with, painting for an aggregate period not exceeding 26 working days in any year and whose ordinary employment does not include painting.;

4. The Minister may (subject to such conditions, if any, as may be specified therein) by certificate in writing (which he may in his discretion revoke at any time) exempt any factory, premises, place or ship from all or any of the requirements of these regulations in any case where he is satisfied that the requirements, in respect of which the exemption is granted, are not necessary for the protection of persons employed or are impracticable.

5. (1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this regulation, lead paint shall not be used, or procured for use, for painting other than in the form of paste or of paint ready for use.

(2) Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph (1) of this regulation, red lead may be procured for use, or used, in the raw or dry state to such extent as may be necessary for the preparation of stopping or filling material and for no other purpose.

(3) Lead paint shall not be procured or stored otherwise than in receptacles which have been legibly marked as containing lead paint.

6. Lead paint shall not be applied in the form of a spray in any of the following operations:

( a ) the interior painting of any building or structure,

( b ) the interior painting of any part of a ship or vessel, including a ship or vessel in the course of construction,

( c ) the painting of any article, other than in a special compartment provided with an efficient exhaust draught and which is so fitted as to render it unnecessary for the person operating the spray to stand between the fan and the article which is to be sprayed.

7. (1) No lead-painted surface, other than a surface of iron or steelwork, shall be rubbed down or scraped by a dry process.

(2) No lead-painted surface of iron or steelwork shall be rubbed down or scraped by a dry sand-papering process.

(3) All debris produced by the rubbing down or scraping of any lead-painted surface shall be removed before such debris becomes dry.

8. There shall be provided for the use of all persons employed in, or in connection with, lead painting and who are liable to come into contact with lead paint, a sufficient supply of water, soap, nail brushes and towels to enable such persons to wash themselves when they have finished work. At least one bucket or basin shall be supplied for every five persons so employed.

9. Suitable arrangements shall be made so as to prevent clothing which is not worn during working hours by persons employed in or In connection with lead painting being soiled by lead paint, and, where practicable, the accommodation so provided shall be outside any place in which lead painting is being carried on.

10. Every employer who employs any person to do lead painting, or in connection with lead painting, shall give to every such person employed:

( a ) when such person is first employed by him, and

( b ) on the first pay day in each year,

a copy of the approved leaflet relating to the precautions to be taken so as to prevent lead poisoning in painters.

11. Where any person, whose ordinary employment does not include lead painting, is occasionally employed in or in connection with lead painting, his employer shall keep a record showing the periods during which such person was so employed by him, and such record shall be open at all reasonable times for inspection by an inspector. For the purposes of these Regulations, the employment of such a person as aforesaid for a period of less than half a normal working day shall be deemed to be employment for half-a-day and employment of less than a whole normal working day but more than half-a-day shall be deemed to be employment for a whole day.

12. An employer shall provide suitable overalls for the use of all persons employed by him in lead painting and shall arrange for such overalls to be washed at least once per week and to be replaced when necessary.

13. The overalls provided pursuant to Regulation 12 of these Regulations shall be worn during the whole of the working period by every person employed in lead painting. Such overalls shall not be worn at meal times.

14. Every person employed in rubbing down or scraping any lead-painted surface shall carry on his work in accordance with the requirements of Regulation 7 of these Regulations.

15. Every person employed in, or in connection with, lead painting shall deposit any clothing not worn by him during working hours so as to prevent it being soiled by lead paint, and for this purpose shall as far as practicable make use of the accommodation provided in pursuance of Regulation 9 of these Regulations.

16. Every person employed in, or in connection with, lead painting and liable to come into contact with lead paint shall carefully clean and wash his hands before partaking of food or before leaving the premises.

SCHEDULE

Method of Treatment of Lead Paint for the purpose of ascertaining the percentage of Compound of Lead present.

The material is to be treated with suitable solvents to remove oil, varnish and other media, and the residue to be dried at 100°C. and thoroughly mixed. A weighed quantity of this extracted, dried and mixed material is to be continuously shaken for one hour, at the common temperature, with 1,000 times its weight of an aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid containing 0.25 per cent by weight of hydrogen chloride. This solution is thereafter to be allowed to stand for one hour and then filtered. The lead salt contained in the clear filtrate is then to be precipitated as lead sulphide and weighed as lead sulphate.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 6th day of January, 1976.

MICHAEL O'LEARY,

Minister for Labour.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These regulations prescribe safety measures which must be taken for the safety, health and welfare of persons engaged in lead painting in premises and places to which the Act applies.

THE FACTORIES (LEAD PAINTING REGULATIONS), 1976.

Leaflet approved by the Minister for Labour for the purpose of Regulation 10.

PREVENTION OF LEAD POISONING IN PAINTERS.

1. WHAT IT IS

It is not widely appreciated that the earliest symptoms of lead poisoning in painters may be very indefinite, such as lack of energy, muscular aches passed off as rheumatism and a slight degree of anaemia (bloodlessness) which may only be detectable as the result of special tests. These conditions are very common and in the majority of cases are unconnected with occupation. Even when experienced by painters they are not necessarily an indication of poisoning, but a painter using lead paints who finds himself suffering from these symptoms should seek medical advice. At a later stage of lead poisoning other symptoms appear, such as colic (griping pains in the abdomen) and constipation. Another sign is "wrist drop" or weakness of the wrist and fingers, usually of the hand which holds the paint bruth. At this stage, anaemia may be much more obvious. These more advanced stages of poisoning are nowadays uncommon in painters.

2. HOW IT OCCURS

The chief cause of lead poisoning in painters has been the breathing in of dust from dry rubbing-down of surfaces which have been painted with lead-containing paints. The spraying of lead paint in the interior painting of buildings is also very dangerous. Lead paint does not enter the body through the skin. It may, however, be swallowed along with food if the hands are soiled or if cigarettes, especially hand-rolled cigarettes, are smoked at work.

Dry rubbing-down of lead painted surfaces is, in general, prohibited by Regulations. Where the painted material consists of iron or steel only dry sand-papering is prohibited. Although nowadays paints ( other than certain primer paints) seldom contain appreciable quantities of lead, this is not necessarily true of the old paint being rubbed-down. Painted surfaces should therefore never be rubbed-down dry unless it is certain that a lead paint was not previously used, and any debris from wet rubbing-down should be removed before it can dry.

The spraying of lead paint in the interior painting of buildings and ships is also prohibited by law.

The application of ready mixed paints, whether containing lead or not, should be quite harmless if used in a clean way.

In recent years, painters and others engaged in burning off multiple coats of old paint from structural steel work by means of blowlamps, etc., have developed lead poisoning. In this process, it is the breathing in of fume which causes poisoning.

3. HOW TO PREVENT LEAD POISONING

A painter can do much himself to prevent lead poisoning from his work. He should be very careful to keep his hands clean and should never eat or smoke without first washing them.

If a respirator (mask) is provided for a particular job on which he is engaged, he should be conscientious in using it. He should also make full use of overalls, whether his own or provided by his employer, and these should be washed at least once a week. If they become dusty and it is not possible to clean them by some other means, they should be shaken only out of doors, avoiding as far as possible the inhalation of any dust set free.

4. WHAT TO DO IN CASE OF ILL-HEALTH

Medical advice in the early stages of ill-health is especially important if there is any suspicion that lead poisoning is the cause. Early treatment can do so much to bring about a complete cure, while neglect of symptoms may allow lead to accumulate in the body. Modern methods of treatment of lead poisoning are very successful.

5. PAINTS OTHER THAN LEAD

With the exception of lead compounds (and those of mercury in anti-fouling paints) there is no evidence that metallic compounds in paints cause ill-health. The vapours of paints and thinners can cause headache, giddiness and sometimes (when working in ill-ventilated confined spaces) sickness and stomach pains which may be confused with lead colic. These symptoms generally disappear in fresh air and good ventilation is the best protection against such effects.

6. PAINTING IN CONFINED SPACES

Painting which has to be done in a poorly ventilated area or space from which the fumes from the paint solvents cannot, unaided, readily disperse, may entail additional hazards from these fumes. Dangerous concentration may quickly occur unless effective steps are taken to secure and maintain adequate ventilation. There may also be a risk in such cases of persons entering these confined spaces being overcome because of lack of oxygen, since oil paints dry by taking oxygen from the air.

Prevention is by good ventilation during painting: if there is doubt later about the freedom from fumes or sufficiency of oxygen, additional safety measures should be taken before re-entry. These include the use of a respirator providing a supply of fresh air from outside the space, and the wearing of a safety belt and line, the latter held by a person outside. This may be required by law when the work is carried out in a factory.