Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
It is important for everyone on the job site to understand the importance of PPE, how to check for damage and ensure proper fit.
- By Sydny Shepard
- Feb 01, 2022
While personal protective equipment is the last line of defense against hazards on the job following engineering and administrative controls, PPE is still essential to everyday safety for workers. It is important for employees to understand site-specific reasons why PPE is required on the job site as well as how to properly don protective gear so that it can protect workers from injury.
Types of PPE
There are four types of PPE that workers should be familiar with. Sometimes there is no need to educate and train workers on certain personal protective gear if certain hazards are not present, but you should do your best to ensure the employees are as educated as possible about the types of PPE they may need in certain scenarios.
Eye and Face Protection. PPE to protect the face and eyes includes safety googles or glasses, and various other face shields. This kind of PPE should be used when employees are tasked with items such as welding or spraying chemicals.
Respiratory Protection. Respiratory protection is PPE that includes full-face respirators, N95s, self-breathing apparatus and more. This kind of PPE is designed to stop employees from exposure to harmful chemicals, gasses, viruses and materials that are often inhaled during work.
Skin and Body Protection. This is the largest category of PPE and often includes personal protective gear that protects the head, body, hands, feet and employee from falling from height. The best examples of this kind of PPE are hard hats, high visibility vests, cut- or puncture-resistant gloves, knee pads, safety boots and safety harnesses.
Hearing Protection. The last type of PPE is Hearing Protection. This often includes gear such as earmuffs and earplugs. This PPE is designed to reduce a worker’s exposure to loud noise that could lead to permanent hearing loss.
Important Guidelines
There are five guidelines all employees should keep in mind when they’ve been assigned duties that require personal protective equipment.
Last Line of Defense. PPE should not be the first thing an employee reaches for to protect themselves. Safety professionals and teams should work through administrative and engineering controls to eliminate and reduce hazards before PPE is brought into the discussion. If other means do not eliminate hazards, PPE will be required. Remember, PPE does not eliminate risk, it simply reduces it.
Proper Fit. PPE that does not fit the worker properly will not protect against hazards. PPE that is too small, or too large can bring more hazards than it protects against by snagging on other equipment or restricting worker movement. If you believe your PPE does not properly fit, work with your supervisors to find a size that works.
This article originally appeared in the February 1, 2022 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.