OSHA now requires employer to pay for some of your PPE

This article is worth a look if you have to wear protective equipment on the job.


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Now OSHA requires employers to bear the cost of most personal protection equipment it requires employees to wear on the job
Many Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) health, safety, maritime and construction standards require employers to provide their employees with protective equipment, including personal protective equipment (PPE), when such equipment is necessary to protect employees from job-related injuries, illnesses and fatalities. These requirements address PPE of many kinds: hard hats, gloves, goggles, safety shoes, safety glasses, welding helmets and goggles, faceshields, chemical protective equipment, fall protection equipment and so forth. The provisions in OSHA standards that require PPE generally state that the employer is to provide such PPE. However, some of these provisions do NOT specify that the employer is to provide such PPE at no cost to the employee. In this recent rulemaking, OSHA requires employers to pay for the PPE provided. Some specific items are not included in the ruling. The rule does not require employers to provide PPE where none has been required before. Instead, the rule merely stipulates that the employer must pay for required PPE, except in the limited cases specified in the standard.
Dates for compliance
This final rule became effective on February 13, 2008, and must be implemented by May 15, 2008. The rule's Federal Register Number is 72:64341-64430.
General requirements of the standard
Employers must pay for the minimum level of PPE as required in 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1910, 1915, 1917, 1918 and 1926.
If an employer decides to upgrade PPE to meet the requirements of a standard, the employer must pay for that PPE upgrade.
If an employer provides PPE at no cost, and an employee asks to use different PPE, and the employer decides to allow him or her to do so, then the employer is not required to pay for the item(s).
Items for which employer payment is required include:
Metatarsal foot protection, special boots for longshoremen working with logs, rubber boots with steel toes, shoe covers—toe caps and metatarsal guards
Non-prescription eye protection, prescription eyewear inserts/lenses for full-face respirators and for welding and diving helmets
Goggles, face shields, laser safety goggles
Firefighting PPE (helmet, gloves, boots, proximity suits, full gear)
Hard hats
Hearing protection
Welding PPE
Items used in medical/laboratory settings to protect from exposure to infectious agents (aprons, lab coats, goggles, disposable gloves, shoe covers, etc.)
Non-specialty gloves
Payment required if PPE; e.g., to protect against dermatitis, severe cuts/abrasions
Payment not required if only for keeping clean or cold weather (with no safety or health consideration)
Rubber sleeves
Aluminized gloves
Chemical-resistant gloves, aprons and clothing
Barrier creams (unless solely for weather-related protection)
PPE exempted from the rule:
Non-specialty safety-toe protective footwear, such as steel-toe shoes/boots, that an employer allows an employee to wear off the jobsite
Non-specialty prescription safety eyewear that an employer allows an employee to wear off the jobsite
Ordinary cold weather gear (coats, parkas, cold-weather gloves, winter boots)
Sturdy work shoes, lineman's boots, ordinary rain gear and work clothes, back belts
Dust masks/respirators used under the voluntary use provisions in §1910.134
Logging boots required under §1910.266(d)(1)(v)
Sunglasses/sunscreen
Rubber insulating gloves
Mesh cut-proof gloves, mesh or leather aprons
Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), atmosphere-supplying respirators (escape only)
Respiratory protection
Fall protection
Ladder safety device belts
Climbing ensembles (e.g., belts and climbing hooks) used by linemen
Window cleaner's safety straps
Personal flotation devices (life jackets)
Encapsulating chemical protective suits
Reflective work vests
Bump caps
Other issues clarified
Replacement of PPE: Employers are required to pay except for limited circumstances in which an employee has lost or intentionally damaged the issued PPE.
Employee-owned PPE: Employers are not responsible for reimbursing an employee for any PPE he or she may already own (from previous employment); however, employers cannot make any employee buy their own PPE.
Upgrading PPE: Employers are not required to pay for upgraded or personalized PPE requested by an employee, provided the employer provides adequate basic PPE to the employee.
The regulation concludes by discussing what employees qualify for this rule, what payment terms are acceptable, the regulation's effect on union contracts, and its environmental impact.
Related Web Sites
http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=FEDERAL_REGISTER&p_id=20094
http://www.osha.gov/



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