This booklet was adapted from Stay Healthy and Safe While Giving Manicures and Pedicures: A Guide for Nail Salon Workers, which was developed by the Labor Occupational Health Program (LOHP), University of California, Berkeley and the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, which was produced through the Susan Harwood Grant Program, under grant number SH20864SH0 from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor.

Photos and video stills were provided by the Asian Law Caucus and Street Level Health Project, the Boston Public Health Commission, and the King County Local Hazardous Waste Management Program. Illustrations were provided by Mary Ann Zapalac.

Stay Healthy and Safe While Giving Manicures and Pedicures A Guide for Nail Salon Workers

U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration OSHA 3542-09R 2025

With this guide, you will learn about possible hazards in nail salons and good work practices that should be used in nail salons to protect you from chemical hazards, muscle strains, and diseases. This booklet also explains your rights as a nail salon worker. For more information, see OSHA’s Health Hazards in Nail Salons website at www.osha.gov.

Contents Chemical Hazards............................................................................................... 3 Hazardous Chemicals Found in Nail Salon Products................................................ 3 Where to Get Information about the Chemicals Found in Nail Salon Products. ...... 4 Product Labels......................................................................................................... 4 Safety Data Sheets (often called “SDSs”)................................................................ 5 Steps You Can Take to Protect Your Health............................................................... 5 Choose Safer Products............................................................................................ 5 Ventilate the Room and Let in Fresh Air................................................................ 6 Use Safe Work Practices to Avoid Regular and Accidental Exposures ................. 7 Keep Products Off of Skin and Out of Eyes .......................................................... 7 Respiratory Protection............................................................................................. 8

Preventing Aches and Pains. ...................................................................... 10 Steps You Can Take to Reduce These Hazards......................................................... 10 Stretching Exercises You Can Do to Reduce Aches and Pains . ............................... 11

Biological Hazards............................................................................................ 12 Steps You Can Take to Prevent Exposure and Protect Your Health....................... 12

Your Rights as a Worker............................................................................... 13 What is the difference between an Employee and an Independent Contractor for purposes of the Occupational Safety and Health Act?. ...................................... 13 Why does it matter? ................................................................................................... 13 What are my rights as a worker? ............................................................................... 14 Contact OSHA . ......................................................................................................... 14

For More Information................................................................................... 15 Resources on Chemical Exposures in Nail Salons.................................................... 15 Resources on How to Prevent Muscle Strains (Ergonomic Hazards)...................... 16 Resources on How to Prevent Exposure to Biological Hazards............................... 16 OSHA Worker Resources........................................................................................... 17 NIOSH Health Hazard Evaluation Program............................................................ 17

Chemical Hazards Products used in nail salons may have chemicals in them that can harm your health. Chemicals can get into your body if you: • Breathe in vapors, dusts, or mists from the products; • Get the product on your skin or in your eyes; or • Swallow the product if it gets on your uncovered food, drink, or cigarettes. Chemicals affect different people in different ways. How a chemical affects you also depends on how much of it you are exposed to. You can get sick right away, or you can get sick over time. Exposures can “add up,” especially when many products are being used at the same time, when the products are used day after day, or when there is poor ventilation in the salon. If you use chemicals all day, every day, you are more likely to get sick than someone who uses the same chemicals once in a while. Follow the steps in this guide to help protect your health.

Hazardous Chemicals Found in Nail Salon Products Nail products, such as polishes, strengtheners, removers, and artificial nail liquids, can contain many chemicals. Some of these chemicals Tip: Make sure your doctor or are more harmful than others. Over time with repeated use or healthcare provider knows exposure to high concentrations, these chemicals could damage your what type of work you body or cause an allergic reaction. Every person is different and not do and the chemicals you everyone who breathes in these chemicals or gets them on their skin use. Tell them if you are will experience these effects now or in the future. pregnant or planning to become pregnant. Some potentially hazardous chemicals, the types of products they can be found in, and how they can affect your body include: • Acetone (nail polish remover): headaches; dizziness; and irritated eyes, skin, and throat. • Acetonitrile (fingernail glue remover): irritated nose and throat; breathing problems; nausea; vomiting; weakness; and exhaustion. • Butyl acetate (nail polish, nail polish remover): headaches and irritated eyes, skin, nose, mouth, and throat. • Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) (nail polish): nausea and irritated eyes, skin, nose, mouth, and throat. Long-term exposures to high concentrations may cause other serious effects. • Ethyl acetate (nail polish, nail polish remover, fingernail glue): irritated eyes, stomach, skin, nose, mouth, and throat; high concentrations can cause fainting.

• Ethyl methacrylate (EMA) (artificial nail liquid): asthma; irritated eyes, skin, nose, and mouth; difficulty concentrating. Exposures while pregnant may affect your child. • Formaldehyde (nail polish, nail hardener): difficulty breathing, including coughing, asthma-like attacks, and wheezing; allergic reactions; irritated eyes, skin, and throat. Formaldehyde can cause cancer. • Isopropyl acetate (nail polish, nail polish remover): sleepiness, and irritated eyes, nose, and throat. • Methacrylic acid (nail primer): skin burns and irritated eyes, skin, nose, mouth, and throat. At higher concentrations, this chemical can cause difficulty breathing. • Methyl methacrylate (MMA) (artificial nail products, though banned for use in many states): asthma; irritated eyes, skin, nose, and mouth; difficulty concentrating; loss of smell. • Quaternary ammonium compounds (disinfectants): irritated skin and nose and may cause asthma. • Toluene (nail polish, fingernail glue): dry or cracked skin; headaches, dizziness, and numbness; irritated eyes, nose, throat, and lungs; damage to liver and kidneys; and harm to unborn children during pregnancy. Report any health problems you think are from the products you use in the workplace to your employer and doctor. Employers must follow up on reports of health problems from workers.

Where to Get Information about the Chemicals Found in Nail Salon Products You can get product information on packaging, or in printed materials delivered with the product such as its material safety data sheet. Product Labels At minimum, professional-use nail salon products containing hazardous chemicals must provide the following information: • The name and address of the product manufacturer or distributer; • Something that explains the type and use of the product, such as a name, description, or illustration; • Facts about the product, such as directions for safe use if a product could be unsafe if used incorrectly; and • All necessary warning and caution statements.

Safety Data Sheets (often called “SDSs”) OSHA requires product manufacturers to provide salon owners with material safety data sheets (SDSs)1 for the products they buy that contain hazardous chemicals. Employers must make these SDSs available to you. Your employer must also train you so that you understand the chemicals’ potential hazards and how to use the products safely. In general, an SDS must provide the following information: • Hazardous ingredients in the product; • How you can be exposed to the ingredients; • Health and safety risks you face when using the product; and • Steps for safely using and storing the product, including what to do in emergencies. Be aware that SDSs may not contain all the information needed to help protect you. For example, the manufacturer may state that you should wear “impervious gloves,” but not specify the type.

Steps You Can Take to Protect Your Health Choose Safer Products • Whenever possible, use products with the least hazardous chemicals in them. o 3-free: Some products now claim to be made without the “toxic trio” (toluene, formaldehyde, and dibutyl phthalate). These products are called “3-free” products.2 o Acid free: Some primers claim to be made without chemicals like methacrylic acid. These are labeled “acid free.” • Always read product labels and SDSs and follow manufacturers’ instructions when using all nail salon products, including those labeled as “free” of hazardous chemicals.

1 OSHA’s Hazard Communication standard, 29 CFR 1910.1200. 2 On April 10, 2012 the California Department of Toxic Substances (DTSC) announced its discovery of certain nail polish and nail care products that may endanger nail salon workers and the public despite being marketed as non-toxic. In May 2011, DTSC tested 25 nail products sold by California distributors. Of the 12 claiming to be “toxic-free,” 10 contained toulene and four contained dibutyl phthalate (DBP). For more information, call (800) 728-6942 or visit www.dtsc.ca.gov.

Ventilate the Room and Let in Fresh Air Ventilation is the best way to lower the level of chemicals in the salon. These steps can really help improve your health: • Open doors and windows when possible to let in fresh air. If the salon has a ceiling vent, it should be turned on and working. • Always keep the nail salon’s exhaust system on. • If your salon does not have an exhaust system, always keep the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system on during work hours. The HVAC thermostat fan switch should always be in the “on” position (not “auto”) so that it runs even when the heat or air conditioner is off. The salon owner should have a HVAC contractor clean the HVAC system and replace the filters at least once a year. • Place fans near open doors or windows. Fans should pull air in one end of the salon and push it out of the other end.

Bad ventilation: Outside air from the Good ventilation: Outside air from the open window blows the chemicals into open window blows the chemicals away the worker’s face before being vented from the worker’s face before being out of the salon. vented out of the salon.

• If the salon has ventilated tables: o Make sure they are turned on. o Change the charcoal filters at least once a month. o Clean out the catch basin at least once a week. Photo of ventilated table courtesy of the • If the salon has portable ventilation machines, use them in your Boston Public Health Commission. work area to pull harmful vapors away from you and your clients.

Use Safe Work Practices to Avoid Regular and Accidental Exposures • Store chemicals in small bottles with small openings and label them with the information from the manufacturer’s label. • Close bottles tightly when you are not using them so the product does not spill or get into the air. • Use metal trashcans with tight, self-closing lids to keep the nail products soaked on cotton balls and other trash from evaporating and getting into the salon’s air. o Put cotton balls and other soaked materials into the trashcans immediately. Ventilation off: Without a ventilation o If you do not have metal trashcans with self-closing lids, put system running, chemical levels during cotton balls and soaked materials in a sealed bag before putting acrylic nail removal reached very high levels (over 826 parts per million). them in the trashcan and keep the trash covered. o Empty trashcans often and remove from the work area to the outside garbage at the end of each day. • Use only the amount of product you need to perform services. When possible, do not keep extra products at a workstation. • Follow instructions for safely disposing of used chemicals. DO NOT pour them down your sink or toilet, throw them on the ground or down outside drains, or pour them onto cotton balls. o Some chemicals must be disposed of in a specific way. For example, used liquid acetone must be saved in a fire department- approved metal container and disposed of as hazardous waste. • Wash your hands before eating, drinking, putting on cosmetics, and smoking. Ventilation on: With a ventilation system running, chemical levels • When you have a break, go outside to get some fresh air. This will dropped significantly during the same give you a chance to get away from chemicals in the salon’s air. process (below 12.4 parts per million). • Keep food and drinks covered at all times, and do not store or eat Images courtesy of the Local Hazardous food in work areas. Waste Management Program in King County, WA.

Keep Products Off of Skin and Out of Eyes • Wear long-sleeved shirts to protect your arms and pants or skirts that are at least knee-length to protect your lap from acrylic nail and other dusts. • Wash your hands before and after working on clients; before eating, drinking, putting on cosmetics or smoking; and after handling or transferring products. • Wear goggles and the appropriate type of disposable gloves when handling and transferring products. For example, nitrile gloves (usually blue or purple) protect against many chemicals used in nail salon products, but latex or vinyl gloves are appropriate when handling acetone.

• Replace gloves immediately if there are cuts, tears, or holes in them. • Cover and protect cuts or cracks in your skin. Damaged skin can increase chemical absorption and exposure. • Do not continue to use a product if you see signs of skin irritation. o If your hands are red and irritated, make sure your gloves are the right type for the product you are using.

Respiratory Protection Using the ventilation methods described above, using products without harmful chemicals, and following good work practices all reduce the level of chemicals in a nail salon. If you work in a salon that follows these practices, you may not need respiratory protection.

Evaluating Possible Hazards Employers need to determine if the levels of dust and/or chemical vapors in the salon pose a risk to workers and decide if respirators are required. Small employers can use available industrial hygiene services from OSHA’s On-site Consultation Program. Other groups that can provide assistance include an employer’s private insurance company or private industrial hygiene consulting firms. Because chemicals can cause effects even at low levels, you may decide that you want to wear a respirator to protect yourself while transferring chemicals or when buffing and filing nails.

Types of Respirators Many nail salon workers wear paper or cloth medical masks. These are not the same as dust masks (filtering facepieces), and even when stuffed with tissues, they will not protect you from breathing in harmful gases, vapors, or dusts.

Here are some types of respirators that may be used in nail salons:

Filtering Facepiece You should only use NIOSH-approved filtering facepiece respirators. Respirators “N95s” are one type. (Dust Masks) This type of respirator will: • Help protect you from dust, viruses, and germs. This type of respirator will not: • Protect you from vapors or gases. Some N95s have filters that reduce chemical odors, but they may not protect you from harmful chemical exposure levels. Filtering facepiece respirators may be helpful when you are: • Buffing or filing artificial nails; or • Using acrylic powders. You don’t need to wear the mask all the time, only when you are working on a client. When you put on this mask, make sure your hands are clean to avoid irritating your skin. If your employer allows you to wear this type of respirator voluntarily, then he/she must give you Appendix D of the OSHA Respiratory Protection Standard, which explains some important information about how to safely and effectively use your respirator.

Half-mask Half-mask respirators with chemical cartridges offer protection from Respirators with breathing in chemical vapors. Cartridges This type of respirator will: • Help protect you from breathing in chemical gases and vapors (such as formaldehyde). Your employer may require you to wear this type of respirator when you: • Transfer chemicals from larger bottles to smaller bottles; or • Clean up large spills. If you must use this type of respirator: • Your employer is required to develop a respiratory protection program; • You must be fitted and trained to wear a respirator properly; • Your employer must evaluate the appropriate cartridge for the job task and provide it to you; and • You must know how and when to change cartridges, and your employer must provide you with a cartridge change out schedule.

Preventing Aches and Pains Nail salon workers can get aches and pains from leaning over a worktable for a long time; doing repetitive movements like filing and buffing nails; and resting hands, wrists, and forearms and/or elbows against hard surfaces or sharp edges of worktables. These are often called ergonomic or musculoskeletal hazards because they affect your muscles and bones. Ergonomics is the science of “fitting the task to the worker” so that you are more comfortable and efficient when doing your job. Good ergonomic practices will reduce stress to your body and help you avoid aches and pains.

Steps You Can Take to Reduce These Hazards What is wrong with this picture? • Use an adjustable chair. Sit so that your feet are flat on the floor and your back is supported. Use a footrest if your feet do not touch the floor when sitting. • Make sure there is enough space between the back of your knees and the front edge of your seat to improve blood flow to your legs. • Adjust the lighting. Good lighting can help you see without having to bend over. • Raise the client’s hand or foot. Use a cushion to raise the client’s hand or foot so you do not have to bend over as far. What improvements do you see? • Use safety glasses with magnifying lenses. These glasses reduce the need for you to bend over to see the client’s hand or foot. • Put a towel or foam pad on the table edge to soften it for hands, arms, wrists, and elbows. • Put soft pads on tools to make handles larger and easier to hold. • Take frequent breaks if possible; changing positions and doing a different task is also helpful. • Pace your work. When you work too fast, your body can become tense, which could cause muscle pain. • Do gentle stretching exercises, like the ones on the following