The R&S phrases and orange square pictograms are an old system - pre GHS - and will be going away. The new Hazard & Precautionary phrases are the new GHS/OSHA phrases. Manufacturer's have 3 years from the publication date to rewrite their SDSs, so you will see lots of old info for awhile, and the bigger manufacturer's will start to change over first.
The GHS H&P phrases had numbers "H200", "H310", etc. OSHA did not bring those code numbers into the new regulation, but EU did. So, you may see them on SDSs for materials that are sold in Europe. They are helping me enter the info into my SDS db. Don't use those numbers for training, tho. They won't be on all the SDSs and are not part of the OSHA new scheme. It will only lead to confusion in the workers (too much new info & it won't always be available).
As for the categories vs. NFPA. Don't stress about it. It won't be that confusing for the worker. The labels & SDSs won't solely list that (it must be included, tho). Its 1 part of the new scheme. It will be used by the manufacturer to select the signal word & pictogram. Those are the new elements that workers will use and we should concentrate on our training. OSHA will allow the NFPA & HMIS pictograms to be included on the labels & SDS (read the preamble! Mine is color coded & dog-eared). Manufacturer's must understand & embrace the new category numbers. Workers have to understand the new pictograms & hazard statements. NFPA can still continue to be used in labs & other workplaces on labels or areas, but NFPA was never meant to be anything but a quick visual warning as to a chemical's relative risk. It does not give any specific hazard info. WHen they look at a bottle label, workers will see the red diamond with the hazard pictogram & (maybe) the NFPA diamond with the familiar 0-4 numbers. NFPA isn't used by all manufacturer's, so unless your workplace is relabeling all containers, it shouldn't have been the sole info the worker uses for hazard assessment. I'd like to think or workers, especially the lab people, can understand this new system.
