Your workplace can pose many potential hazards for workers’ hands on any given day – whether from chemicals, cuts, burns or other incidents. Even an injury as minor as a paper cut can be serious if it should become infected.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) details its requirements for hand protection in Standard #1910.138. In general, OSHA mandates that employees use appropriate protection when their hands are exposed to hazards such as those from skin absorption of harmful substances; cuts or lacerations; abrasions; punctures; chemical or thermal burns, and harmful temperature extremes.
Hand injuries are not to be taken lightly. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that approximately 250,000 serious accidents involving fingers, hands and wrists take place every year in private industry alone. Included in this sobering total are 8,000 amputations per year.
Engineering & Work Practice Controls
Before enforcing personal protective equipment (PPE) mandates, employers should investigate possible engineering and work practice controls to help prevent hand injuries. For instance, processes may be changed, less harmful materials may be substituted, or guarding and other barriers may be installed. Other options worth pursuing include:
- Establishment of basic rules, such as never wearing gloves, jewelry or loose clothing while operating machinery.
- Worker job rotation.
- Personal hygiene.
- Housekeeping and maintenance.
- Tool and equipment selection and inspection.
Types of Gloves
Protective gloves are classified into four groups:
- Work gloves: leather for working with sparks, moderate heat, blows, chips and rough objects; aluminized mesh for working with heat, and canvas for working with heat and cold. Metal mesh gloves also are cut and abrasion resistant.
- Fabric and coated gloves: cotton and other fabric for working with dirt, slivers, chafing and abrasion, and cotton flannel coated with plastic for general, slip-resistant purposes.
- Chemical and liquid-resistant gloves: butyl rubber for working with acids, peroxide, rocket fuels, bases, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, esters and nitro-compounds; natural latex rubber for working with water/acid solutions, alkalis, salts and ketones; neoprene for working with hydraulic fluids, gasoline, alcohols, organic acids and alkalis, and nitrile rubber for working with chlorinated solvents, oils, greases, acids, caustics and alcohols.
- Insulating rubber gloves: These are referred to under 29 CFR 1910.137: Electrical Protective Equipment.
Training
As with all PPE, employers must train each user to know when and what type of gloves are necessary for the job. Employees also should know how to safely don and remove gloves, how to inspect them for wear and tear, and how to properly dispose of them. If non-disposable gloves are used, the user also must be instructed in cleaning, maintenance and storage procedures.
Continually emphasize that gloves should never be work while using power tools or machines such as saws. They may snag and pull the hand into the blade or another danger area.
Inspection & Care
Gloves should be inspected before every use to make sure they continue to provide the required level of protection. If they are punctured, torn or otherwise damaged, they must be discarded and replaced. Proper glove storage depends on the specific usage and environment and is best determined by referring to manufacturers’ guidelines.
Refer to the OSHA website for complete details.
For additional assistance in keeping your employees injury free, contact the safety and HR workforce experts at Premium Staffing and refer to our related OSHA update posts.