Question: Can we require slip resistant and safety toe shoes and have the employee pay for them if they are allowed to take them home? If we do not allow them to take the shoes home do we have to pay for them?
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Answer: If an employer allows employees to take safety shoes home, it is not required to pay for them. If, however, an employer does not allow employees to take the shoes home, it must pay for them.
Indiana has adopted by reference the federal rules for personal protective equipment in general industry workplaces, including those for protective footwear (620 IAC 1-1-1).
Under the federal rules (29 CFR 1910.132(h)), employers are not required to pay for non-specialty safety toe protective footwear, including steel-toe shoes or steel-toe boots, if they allow such items to be worn off the job-site. If the protective footwear is not permitted to be worn off the job-site, the employer must provide it at no cost to employees.
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