A Comparison study of perception towards Chemical Hazard Warning Signs in Old and Globally Harmonized System (GHS) among chemical workers in Shiraz, Iran

  The Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) is an internationally agreed-upon standard developed by the United Nations to replace the previously used hazardous material classification and labelling all over the world, including Iran. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perception of GHS, compared to old chemical hazard signs in an Iranian population. This cross-sectional study was carried out on 220 employees of the chemical industries in Shiraz, Iran. Data were collected using a questionnaire containing 28 color images of (including20 GHS and 8 old chemical hazards signs). In this study, there was a significant difference between the mean perception of GHS (0.37±0.18) and old chemical hazards signs (0.73±0.22). The percentage of people who had the correct perception, were below the ISO 3864-2-acceptable limit (67%), for 17 out of 20 GHS signs (85%). All studied GHS signs had unacceptable perception according to ANSI 53503 acceptable limit (85%). GHS signs had lower acceptable perception compared to old signs of chemical hazards. Considering the increasing trend of globally harmonized system (GHS) in hazard communication and labeling of chemicals, it is required to train people in order to promote the understanding and acceptance of these signs