The Truth About Work Gloves And PPE Equipment

Simply providing employees with work gloves is not enough. It's often assumed by many businesses and employers that simply providing appropriate PPE equipment and clothing, such as work gloves, is all that is required to comply with current regulations governing safety at work, PPE equipment and safety clothing.

However, assuming that provision of the equipment or clothing is all that's required to let the business or employer 'get off the hook' should an accident or injury occur is likely to backfire spectacularly. Because the regulations actually state a good deal more, and it is essential both in terms of compliance with regulations and the fundamental safety and well being of employees that businesses appreciate just how far their responsibilities go, and what it takes to comply with PPE equipment and clothing requirements.

To start with, it is clearly wrong to assume that safety equipment or clothing will last forever. Work gloves for example are likely to wear out quite quickly if they are used for long periods of time every single day. Even the best quality safety gloves will begin to become worn or damaged - but that is after all their purpose, to take the damage so that people's hands don't have to. But if employers simply assume that handing out the gloves and other safety equipment is all that's required, this overlooks the fact that at some point the safety equipment will no longer be safe to use, and will no longer provide the kind of protection that's needed.

In fact in some cases worn or damaged equipment or clothing might not just provide a diminished level of protection, it might also contribute towards a new risk or a heightened risk purely because of the damage. For example, if a glove has become worn or frayed, it might be possible that a piece of lose material catches on a piece of machinery, which could jolt the employee as they try to move, which might result in an accident.

So it is essential that all employers put into place suitable procedures to ensure that all safety equipment and clothing is regularly checked by people who are familiar with what to look for, and that any equipment which is not deemed to be safe or able to meet the required standards is marked accordingly, and placed in a location which will prevent anyone from inadvertently trying to use it. This means that checklists need to be created, standards agreed, routines put into place to ensure that the checks are carried out on a regular basis, a procedure established for recording the results, including removing failed PPE equipment from use, and a means for marking or tagging faulty or damaged equipment easily, and in a way which cannot accidentally be overlooked. This will inevitably require staff to be trained in carrying out these checks.

Additionally it will also be expected of employers to carry out appropriate training, so that all staff are fully aware of what the PPE Equipment is for, and how to select the right item for the right task, such as choosing which type of work gloves to wear when using different types of machinery or tools or working within different environments. This training needs to be carried out on a regular basis to ensure everyone is kept up to date with any new requirements or new equipment, and new employees need to be provided with all appropriate training as soon as possible.

All of these requirements need to be documented and verified so that should an investigation be required or called, the business is able to demonstrate full and absolute compliance with current regulations governing the use of, distribution of and maintenance of all PPE equipment, from work gloves and tabards to safety goggles and hard hats.

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For more information on work gloves and PPE equipment visit Intersafety, a leading independent safety equipment supplier.