S.I. No. 43/1976:

FACTORIES (MANUFACTURE OF PAINTS AND COLOURS) REGULATIONS, 1976.

FACTORIES (MANUFACTURE OF PAINTS AND COLOURS) REGULATIONS, 1976.

I, MICHAEL O'LEARY, Minister for Labour, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 6 , 8 , 20 , 53 , 57 and 71 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 Third Schedule to that Act, hereby make the following regulations:

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

2. The Paints and Colours Manufacture Regulations, 1907 (S.R. & O., No. 17 of 1907), are hereby revoked.

3. In these Regulations--

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

"appointed doctor", in relation to a factory to which these Regulations apply, means either the certifying doctor for the district in which the factory is situated, or a registered medical practitioner specially appointed by written certificate of the Minister for the purposes of these Regulations;

"lead colour" means dry carbonate of lead and red lead and includes colour which contains either of those substances;

"health register" means the register kept pursuant to Regulation 9 of these Regulations;

"lead process" means any process involving the mixing, crushing, sifting, grinding in oil, or any other manipulation of lead colour giving rise to dust, or the manufacture of chromate of lead, or the manipulation of chromate of lead produced by boiling in a colour house;

"the Minister" means the Minister for Labour;

"roller mills" means the roller mills used for grinding lead colour in oil;

"suspension" means suspension from employment either in a lead process or at roller mills by written certificate signed by the appointed doctor and entered in the health register.

4. (1) Subject to the following paragraphs of this regulation, these Regulations shall apply to every factory in which dry carbonate of lead or red lead is used in the manufacture of paints or colours or in which chromate of lead is produced by boiling.

(2) These Regulations shall not apply to factories in which paints and colours are manufactured solely for use in the business of the occupier, or to factories in which only the manufacture of artists' colours is carried on.

(3) These Regulations shall not apply in relation to the manufacture of varnish paints.

5. 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--

( a ) in the circumstances mentioned in section 53 of the Act, from a requirement of that section.

( b ) in case he is satisfied that a requirement of these Regulations is not necessary for the protection of persons employed at the factory or that such a requirement is impractical, from that requirement.

6. No lead colour shall be placed in any hopper or chute unless there is provided an efficient exhaust arranged so as to draw the dust away from the worker and located as near as possible to the dust's point of origin.

7. (1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this regulation, a lead process shall not be carried on unless there is provided an efficient exhaust draught located and arranged so as to carry away the dust or steam as near as possible to the dust or steam's point of origin, or in the case of a lead process giving rise to dust, the process is carried on in an apparatus which is closed so as to prevent the escape of dust.

(2) This regulation shall not apply to the immersion and manipulation of lead colour in water.

8. A male under 18 years of age or any female shall not be employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply in manipulating lead colour.

9. A health register containing the names of all persons employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply in any lead process or at roller mills shall be kept at the factory in a form approved for the time being by the Minister.

10. (1) Every person employed in a lead process or at roller mills shall, while so employed, be examined by the appointed doctor once in every calendar month, and due notice of that date on which a person is to be examined pursuant to this regulation shall be given to him.

(2) The appointed doctor shall have power of suspension as regards any persons employed in a lead process or at roller mills, and no such person after suspension shall be employed in a lead process or at roller mills without written sanction from the appointed doctor and entered in the health register kept at the relevant factory.

(3) A record of every examination pursuant to this regulation and of the date thereof, signed or initialled by the appointed doctor, shall be entered in the health register.

11. There shall be provided and maintained for the use of all persons employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process or at roller mills--

( a ) unless all the persons so employed in such a process or at roller mills leave the factory during meal intervals, a suitable mess-room separate from any room in which such a process is carried on or in which there are roller mills,

( b ) suitable overalls which shall be collected at the end of every day's work and be cleaned or renewed at least once in every week,

( c ) a suitable place, separate from the cloakroom and messroom, for the storage of the aforementioned overalls.

12. The occupier of a factory to which these Regulations apply shall ensure that a person employed at the factory is not allowed to keep, prepare or partake of any food, drink or tobacco in any room in the factory in which a lead process is carried on or in which there are roller mills.

13. Suitable provision shall be made for the storage of food brought into a factory to which these Regulations apply by persons employed therein.

14. (1) As regards a factory to which these Regulations apply, washing facilities provided pursuant to section 53 of the Act for the use of persons employed at the factory in a lead process or at roller mills shall be washing facilities which are adequate and suitable for the use of all of the persons so employed in the factory and, where practicable, the said facilities shall be reserved for those persons' exclusive use. The said facilities shall be kept in a clean and orderly condition, be under cover and be immediately accessible or, where this is not reasonably practicable, conveniently accessible, from any workplace at which the persons are so employed. The said facilities shall include clean running hot and cold or warm water, together with soap, non-abrasive nail brushes and clean towels, and either--

( a ) a trough with a smooth impervious surface of such length (or in the case of a circular and oval trough, of such circumference) as to allow sixty centimetres of length for every five persons making use thereof and fitted with suitable jets or sprays serving each sixty centimetres of length or circumference (as the case may be) and with a waste pipe without plug; or

( b ) for every five such persons at least one basin with smooth impervious surface of suitable size fitted with suitable jets or sprays and with a waste pipe.

(2) Where the number of persons employed in a lead process or roller mills in a factory to which these Regulations apply is not a multiple of five, for the purposes of this regulation the number of persons so employed shall be regarded as being the next higher number which is a multiple of five.

15. It shall be the duty of a person employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process or at roller mills to present himself at the appointed time for examination by the appointed doctor pursuant to Regulation 10 of these Regulations.

16. After suspension under Regulation 10(2) of these Regulations a person shall not work in a lead process or at roller mills in a factory to which these Regulations apply without written sanction entered in the health register at the factory by the appointed doctor.

17. It shall be the duty of all persons employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process or at roller mills--

(i) to deposit any clothing put off during working hours in the cloakroom provided pursuant to section 54 of the Act,

(ii) to wear the overalls provided under Regulation 11 (b) of these Regulations, and

(iii) to deposit such overalls in the place provided pursuant to Regulation 11 (c) of these Regulations.

18. A person employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply shall not introduce, keep, prepare, or partake of any food, drink or tobacco in any room in the factory in which a lead process is carried on.

19. It shall be the duty of every person employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process or at roller mills to carefully clean and wash his hands before leaving the factory premises or partaking of any food at the factory.

20. A person employed at a factory to which these Regulations apply shall not, without the permission of the occupier of the factory, interfere in any way with a means or appliance provided for the removal of dust, steam or fumes, or with any other thing provided pursuant to these Regulations.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 23rd day of February, 1976.

MICHAEL O'LEARY,

Minister for Labour.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations provide for the safety, health and welfare of persons employed in factories on certain processes in the manufacture of paints and colours.