Under OSHA’s personal protective equipment (PPE) rule, all PPE, with few exceptions, will be provided at no cost to the employee.
Scope
OSHA’s personal protective equipment covers all employers with employees performing construction work.
Key definitions
- Construction work: Work for construction, alteration, and/or repair, including painting and decorating.
- Protective equipment: Personal protective equipment for eyes, face, head, and extremities, protective clothing, respiratory devices, and protective shields and barriers.
Summary of requirements
In general the standard requires covered employers to:
- Be responsible, where employees provide their own protective equipment, to assure its adequacy, including proper maintenance, fit, and sanitation of such equipment.
- Pay for, and provide at no cost to employees, most types of personal protective equipment (PPE).
- Not pay for non-specialty safety-toe protective footwear (including steel-toe shoes or steel-toe boots) and nonspecialty prescription safety eyewear, provided that the employer permits such items to be worn off the job-site.
- The employer must pay for replacement PPE, except when the employee has lost or intentionally damaged the PPE.
