Platers’ perspective on electroplating hazards

Workers in the electroplating industry are dealing daily with the hazards associated with their profession. How do they understand and control these hazards and risks? Is their approach different from the experts’?

According to an article by Sadhra et al. (2002), workers understanding of the chemical risks of an electroplating shop was examined based on thorough interviews. The following points were highlighted:

• Workers’ understanding is enhanced through experience. Based on their experience, they could understand better the short-term effects of exposure to chemicals, such as chromium and nickel.
• While experts considered the Safety Data Sheets and written means of training to be efficient and important, workers’ preferences were different. Workers considered verbal safety briefings, pictures and videos to be more efficient, while also admitted that they benefit from the co-workers’ experience and learn from one another, rather than reading written manuals and guidelines.

Regarding controlling the chemical risks, experts are prioritizing the control measures, starting from elimination of risk, substitution of risk, engineering controls, administrative controls, and, lastly, personal protective equipment (PPE). However, workers seem to value the most PPE, as the one control measure, they have direct access to and can influence and ensure their protection on a degree.