NATEC moves Cal/OSHA HazCom training online as new GHS update takes effect

NATEC International has launched a two-hour online Cal/OSHA Hazard Communication course for California employers training workers under Title 8 Section 5194. The company says the course is designed to help employees recognize labels, safety data sheets and the 2024 GHS update as California workplaces adapt to new hazard communication requirements.

Why it matters: - California employers face one of Cal/OSHA’s most frequently cited standards in Title 8 Section 5194. - Hazard communication failures can trigger multiple citations from a single incident, including unlabeled containers, missing safety data sheets and no documented training. - The new course is meant to help employers train workers before those gaps turn into violations.

What happened: - NATEC International, Inc. launched a Cal/OSHA HazCom Online Training course for California employers. - The course is built for training on Title 8 Section 5194 on each employer’s schedule. - The online version runs about two hours. - NATEC is headquartered in Fountain Valley, California.

The details: - Section 5194 requires a written hazard communication program, a chemical inventory, safety data sheets for each hazardous chemical and labels on every container. - Employees must be trained at initial assignment and whenever a new chemical hazard enters their work area. - Training covers seven required topics, including how to detect a release and three worker rights: receiving hazard information personally, having a physician or union representative receive it and being protected from retaliation for asking. - California requires a plain-language description of each chemical’s health risks. - Employers must request a missing safety data sheet from the manufacturer within seven working days. - Employees must be informed within 30 days when a new or revised safety data sheet shows significantly increased risk. - The course mirrors NATEC’s classroom version and includes narrated modules on employer responsibilities, the written program, the 16-section safety data sheet, label systems such as GHS, NFPA 704, HMIS and DOT, Proposition 65 and the 2024 update. - The course includes five interactive games: matching workplace questions to safety data sheet sections, building a shipped-container label, setting an NFPA diamond, finding answers on a real safety data sheet and a Jeopardy-style review. - Each game scores and reports completion through the employer’s learning system. - The training directs students to their own employer’s written program and safety data sheets. - Suppliers have been shipping new-format labels and safety data sheets since spring 2026. - Federal OSHA set Nov. 20, 2026 as the deadline for employers to update workplace labels, programs and training for substances under the aligned federal rule. - California employees need to recognize both the old and new formats during the transition.

Between the lines: - The course is built around engagement because passive training often fails to change how workers handle chemicals. - The 2024 federal GHS alignment changes the forms and details workers see on labels and safety data sheets, even though California’s core Section 5194 text did not change. - That makes transition training especially important for employers with mixed inventory and changing supplier documents.

What's next: - California employers will need workers trained on the updated hazard communication materials before the Nov. 20, 2026 federal deadline for substance-related updates. - NATEC says the online format gives employers a way to train new hires during their first week and keep records automatically. - The company also offers OSHA, Cal/OSHA, EPA, DOT and state-specific training in online, in-person, virtual and hybrid formats.