Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
No safety technology is changing as fast as that employed in PPE. The devices of just a few years ago are now obsolete by replacements that are lighter, easier to use, and more protective. These resources alert you to developments in the field, and equally important, supply training ideas to get your workers to use their PPE, and use it correctly.
Free Special Report: Does Your PPE Program Meet OSHA’s Requirements?
The basic objective of any PPE program is to protect employees from safety and health hazards that can’t be engineered out. To pick the right PPE for your employees, you must assess the potential hazards. Personal protective equipment (PPE) in one form or another has been around for centuries. There’s evidence, for example, that early […]
In order to control or eliminate breathing hazards, OSHA has adopted respiratory protection regulations for general industry (except agriculture), shipyards, marine terminals, longshoring, and construction workplaces and for specific air contaminants. Today we’ll focus on the requirements concerning respirator inspection, maintenance, storage, and repair. OSHA estimates that its respirator regulation could save as many as […]
Yesterday’s Advisor examined some of the exceptions and loopholes in the seemingly simple “employer pays” rule for personal protective equipment (PPE). Today we look at some of the other gray areas of the recent rule. As of May 15, 2008, employers were required to comply with an OSHA final rule requiring them to provide—at no […]
On February 13, 2008, an OSHA rule took effect that requires employers to pay for personal protective equipment (PPE) for their employees. Sounds simple enough, right? Hah! As with any regulation covering such a broad and complex area, the “employer pays” PPE rule is rife with exceptions and clarifications. Our sister website, Safety.BLR.com, took a […]
In yesterday’s Advisor, we reviewed OSHA’s foot protection requirements, and particularly the not-so-simple question of who is required to pay for it (generally the employers, but with certain notable exceptions). Today we move on to the proper selection and fit of foot protection, and we’ll look at a tool that helps you satisfy OSHA’s stringent […]
OSHA requires foot protection be worn to guard against a variety of hazards, but the question of who must pay for it is not as simple as it seems. Each year there are tens of thousands of disabling foot injuries, and requiring at-risk workers to wear appropriate foot protection isn’t just good safety practice – […]
Much of what is written about personal protective equipment (PPE) focuses on proper selection and use. Today we look at an equally important and too often overlooked aspect of PPE – proper maintenance. Why devote a column to PPE maintenance? Well, try this on for size: PPE is sometimes the only barrier between employees and […]
Ergonomics is fitting the job to the way the body works. Here are some nifty new devices for doing it.Does your computer mouse vibrate? Does the seat of your chair ebb and flow beneath you like the waves of the sea? Have you worked a computer with your feet today? And how are you dealing […]
OSHA’s new rule, now in effect, says you must pay for nearly all PPE, including hearing protection devices (HPDs). Here’s what you need to know about them and how to get workers to use them. Yesterday’s Advisor began a discussion of workplace noise hazards. The long-term danger of consistent high noise levels, those above an […]
Why do some workers refuse to use the PPE that could save their health or life? A recent survey brings some surprising answers. In yesterday’s Advisor, we reported two conflicting pieces of news from the PPE front of the workplace safety wars. First, that on February 13, OSHA had put into effect its long- proposed […]