29 CFR 1910.134: Respiratory protection

Question 1

During a shift, a worker wearing a cartridge respirator in a solvent-use area notices that breathing has become noticeably harder. The worker tells the supervisor. According to the standard, what must the employer do before the worker returns to the work area?

1. AReplace or repair the respirator
2. BReduce the worker's exposure time in the area to 30 minutes per hour
3. CHave the worker wait 15 minutes and then resume work if breathing eases
4. DPerform a new medical evaluation of the worker before the next shift

Question 2

A fabrication shop allows welders to wear half-mask elastomeric respirators voluntarily during grinding, although air sampling shows exposures are below all limits. The safety manager asks what the written respiratory protection program must cover for these voluntary users. Which response is correct?

1. ANo written program elements are needed because voluntary use is never covered by the standard
2. BThe program need only address fit testing frequency, since medical ability is the employee's own responsibility
3. CThe program must cover voluntary users only if exposures exceed the permissible exposure limit
4. DThe program must include the elements necessary to ensure that the voluntary users are medically able to use the respirator and that the respirators are cleaned, stored, and maintained so they do not present a health hazard

Question 3

A plating shop supervisor plans to use air-purifying respirators with organic vapor cartridges for workers exposed to a solvent vapor. The cartridges have no NIOSH-certified end-of-service-life indicator that suits the shop's conditions. What must the employer do to make this selection compliant?

1. AApply a maximum use concentration to the vapor and keep the same cartridges without any change schedule
2. BSwitch to a filtering facepiece respirator, because it is certified for particulates
3. CLet each worker replace the cartridge whenever the worker decides it is time, as long as the worker has been fit tested
4. DImplement a cartridge change schedule based on objective information or data, and describe that information and its basis in the respirator program

Question 4

During annual fit testing, a worker tells the technician that a recent illness has left him unable to taste or smell. The technician needs a fit-test method whose result does not depend on the wearer noticing a test agent inside the facepiece. Which approach fits this situation?

1. AA service life assessment, because it shows how long the respirator gives adequate protection
2. BA qualitative fit test using a stronger test agent, because the wearer's response still decides the result
3. CA qualitative fit test, because it gives a simple pass/fail result
4. DA quantitative fit test, because it numerically measures leakage into the respirator

Question 5

Five months ago, a worker was trained on the half-mask respirator he still uses, with the same model and the same tasks. During a program audit, the safety professional sees him wearing the respirator with the straps hanging loose. When asked, he cannot explain how to check that the facepiece is working properly. No changes have been made to the workplace or the respirator. What does the standard require the employer to do?

1. ARetrain the worker now, because his demonstrated gaps in knowledge and use show he has not retained the required understanding or skill.
2. BWait until the annual retraining date, because less than 12 months have passed since the last training and nothing in the workplace has changed.
3. CRetrain him only if the respirator model or the workplace changes, since those are the only events that require retraining before the annual cycle.
4. DDocument the observation and have him repeat the medical evaluation, since training is required only when a medical limitation is identified.