Personal Protective Equipments are usually job specific. This means, they differ from job to job. This is quite obvious because a worker pulling asbestos from a roof will have to use different gear from someone who is working at a highway. The regulations for the use of Personal Protective Equipments or PPE are set down by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Although it is specific to the type of job and level of hazards, the basic personal protective equipment includes gloves, hard hats, goggles and steel toed boots. The company provides these equipments to its employees. If there are certain equipments that require a personal fit, like the steel toed work boots, the employees buy it for themselves. However, the company reimburses the cost for those employees who have bought their own personal protective equipments. Hard hats and goggles are the basic and the most commonly used protective equipments. However, there are certain jobs that require more specialized gear. For instance, workers who are exposed to bright lights may require tinted glasses. And someone who works among traffic should be issued high visibility vests with reflective stripes. Similarly, workers employed in dusty work environments will require dust masks and those employed in noisy work environments may require ear plugs. The workers who deal with chemicals will have to work with gloves to protect their skin. Dust masks and ear plugs are disposable personal protective equipments and most of the times are available in dispensers that are located at the workplace itself. Depending upon the industry and magnitude of hazardous exposure, black belts and disposers are also used as personal protective equipments. Eyeglasses are often deemed adequate for eye protection. However, they fail to offer proper protection for debris and particles that come in from the side. In order to provide extra protection, a pair of side shields should be used. These shields are like plastic sheets and can be easily put on the earpiece of the eyeglasses. A truck yard may seem to be perfectly safe. But still, workers are required to wear some kind of personal protective equipments. A light duty bump cap, safety goggles, steel toed boots and orange vests is what is required for truck yards. The chance of getting run over by a truck is fairly remote. However, the bump cap and safety goggles will help protect the head and the eyes from the debris kicked up by a truck. Personal protective equipments keep you safe from hazards. However, they are no substitutes for working safely. Follow safe work practices and you will be able to keep the work place free of all hazards. Remain alert and aware of all the possible potential health and safety hazards. When you are using personal protective equipments, make sure they are free from damage and fit you properly. In order to maintain the safety and good health of the workers, the employer is supposed to provide personal protective equipments wherever required. If your employer is not providing you with them, find out why.
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