Is 40 Hour HAZWOPER Training Required for My Job?

The OSHA Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard or HAZWOPER Standard is a dense and complicated set of regulations that include several separate mandates for training that vary based on the type of workplace, type of work, and the employee’s job role.  

Training under HAZWOPER is required for employees in a range of job roles, all of whom face some elevated risk of exposure to hazardous substances. Based on each employee’s role, the training required by OSHA can vary substantially in the topics covered, the depth and complexity of the material, and how many hours of training or days of field experience, or both, the employee must complete before starting work. 

OSHA requires HAZWOPER training for employees who:  

• Work at a hazardous waste cleanup site like a Superfund site or a RCRA cleanup site,
• Respond to emergency releases of hazardous substances, wherever they occur, or
• Perform hazardous waste operations at a treatment, storage, and disposal facility or TSDF. 

Based on the employee’s role and responsibilities, the mandatory duration of HAZWOPER training for a new employee ranges from 8 hours (or less) to up to 40 hours. The structure and complexity of the HAZWOPER regulations can make it challenging to determine how much training OSHA requires for yourself, your new employees, and others on your team.

Who Is 40 Hour HAZWOPER Training For?

The 40 Hour HAZWOPER training rule is probably the most recognized requirement within this OSHA Standard. Because it is such a widely known term, an employer might easily believe that 40 hour training must be the rule to follow to comply with HAZWOPER. But, OSHA does not require all employees covered by HAZWOPER to complete 40 hour training. In fact, the 40 hour rule only applies to ONE of the three categories we just talked about. 

OSHA requires 40 hours of initial HAZWOPER training for: 

• General site workers at hazardous waste cleanup sites, and 
• Managers and supervisors at these sites who over general site workers and/or perform hazardous waste cleanup activities themselves.

"General site workers" at contaminated cleanup sites face the risk of hazardous substance exposure when they handle containers, operate equipment, perform general labor, etc. In addition to the 40 hours of training, OSHA requires three days of supervised field experience for both groups. Managers and supervisors must also complete at least eight additional hours of training on specialized safety leadership topics.

Mandatory annual refresher training

Once initial training is complete, OSHA requires annual refresher training for employees, supervisors, and managers covered by the HAZWOPER Standard (29 CFR 1910.120(e)(8)). 

HAZWOPER Training: Interactive Decision-maker 

The HAZWOPER Training Decision Maker at Lion.com is an interactive guide to the HAZWOPER training requirements for emergency responders and site cleanup workers. The tool guides users through HAZWOPER compliance by breaking down the regulations based on employee job roles, type of worksite, level of responsibility and experience level. 

The Decision Maker can be used to swiftly determine if an employee needs 40-hour HAZWOPER training, 24-hour training, 8-hour, etc. Users select from clearly defined choices about the type of workplace and the employee’s job responsibilities to quickly arrive at a tailored results screen with recommendations for training. 

Visit Lion.com/HAZWOPER today for more answers about HAZWOPER training and convenient online training and group training options to help you manage OSHA compliance.