TCA § 62-40-101 — Chapter definitions — Qualifications — Penalties

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires: “Industrial hygiene” means the science and art devoted to anticipation, recognition, evaluation and control of environmental factors or stressors arising in or from the workplace that may cause sickness, impaired health and well-being or significant discomfort and inefficiency among workers; “Industrial hygienist” means a person who possesses a baccalaureate degree issued by an accredited college or university in industrial hygiene engineering, chemistry, physics, biology, medicine or related physical and biological sciences and who, by virtue of special studies and training, has acquired competence in industrial hygiene. The special studies and training shall have been sufficient in industrial hygiene engineering, chemistry, physics, biology, medicine or related physical and biological sciences to provide the ability to: Recognize environmental stressors in the workplace and to understand their effects; Evaluate, on the basis of experience and with the aid of quantitative measurement techniques, the magnitude of these stressors in terms of ability to impair health and well-being; and Prescribe methods to eliminate, control or reduce the stressors when necessary to alleviate their effects; and “Professional industrial hygienist” means a person who possesses a baccalaureate degree issued by an accredited college or university in industrial hygiene, engineering, chemistry, physics, biology, medicine or related physical and biological sciences and who has a minimum of three (3) years full-time industrial hygiene experience. A completed master's degree in a related physical or biological science, or in a related engineering discipline, may be substituted for one (1) year of the experience requirement; and a similar doctoral degree may be substituted for an additional year of the experience requirement. Nonexclusive examples of professional industrial hygienists are certified industrial hygienists and industrial hygienists in training, as recognized by the American Board of Industrial Hygiene. An individual shall meet the requirements or qualifications of a professional industrial hygienist as set out in subdivision (a)(3), certified industrial hygienist and industrial hygienist in training, as recognized by the American Board of Industrial Hygiene, before the individual may use the title or represent the individual to the public as a professional industrial hygienist, certified industrial hygienist and industrial hygienist in training. A person who violates subdivision (a)(3) or subsection (b) is subject to a civil penalty of no more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) in chancery court.