Chicago Workers' Compensation Attorney Blog

Potential formaldehyde exposure from some hair products is the warning by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that is going out to hair salon owners and staff.

It has been discovered that hair straightening and smoothing products contain formaldehyde unbeknownst to the user. Hair stylists should always read labels on hair products before using in order to avoid serious illnesses like cancer.

Our workers' compensation attorneys in Chicago know how toxic formaldehyde is and are aware of its connection to nose and lung cancer. It can also irritate the nose and eyes and cause serious allergic reactions.

Investigations have been ongoing by OSHA due to numerous complaints about possible formaldehyde exposure. Warnings have already been issued through Connecticut's Department of Public Health, Oregon's OSHA agencies and in many other states. Formaldehyde was found in air quality tests by federal OSHA when stylists were using hair smoothing products that were suppose to be formaldehyde-free. Formaldehyde must be listed on labels or in material safety data sheets if a product has it as an ingredient.

California's OSHA has issued citations to a distributor and importer of hair products, which claimed to be formaldehyde-free. However, when tested the products contained formaldehyde.

It is a required OSHA standard that all distributors, manufacturers and importers of goods containing formaldehyde in any form, or that can emit formaldehyde during use, must include facts and information on the hazards of formaldehyde on the labels and the material safety data sheets that are given to employers.

"Workers have the right to know the risks associated with the chemicals with which they work, and how to protect themselves," said federal OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels. "Employers need to know these risks in order to ensure the safety and health of their employees."

In order to protect hair stylist from formaldehyde exposures salon owners should avoid any products that contain: methanal, paraform, methylene oxide, oxymethylene, oxomethane, formic aldehyde, formaldehyde, methylene glycol, formalin or Chemical Abstract Service Number 50-00-0.

OSHA has safety standards for anyone using formaldehyde-containing products which include some of the following:
-Conduct air quality testing and monitoring.
-The work area needs to be properly ventilated.
-Workers need to be trained on the hazards of working with formaldehyde.
-Gloves, Chemical resistant aprons, face shields and chemical splash goggles must be worn when using hazardous products.
Additional health hazard information on formaldehyde can be found on OSHA's website.