Safety Clothing Key Terms

Protect employees by ensuring they are equipped with proper safety clothing

Providing employees with proper safety clothing is the duty and responsibility of any employer. The cost associated with outfitting your organization is nothing compared to the benefit employees receive by having these resources, and employers should spare no expense in regards to their employees’ safety. Types of safety clothing includes flame resistant clothing, high visibility clothing such as vests, shirts and pants worn by construction workers, back/lumbar supports, earplugs/hearing protection, gloves/hand protection and safety glasses/goggles.

 

Flame resistant clothing

Flame resistant clothing such as hairnets, coveralls, jackets, lab coats and shirts work to protect individuals from fire and burns that have the potential to occur in their work environment.
Try: To see some of the various types of flame resistant clothing, refer to Safety Supply America.

High visibility clothing

High visibility clothing is a requirement set forth by the Federal Highway Administration 23 CFR Part 634 Worker Visibility regulations that aim to reduce injuries and fatalities to individuals working within the right-of-way on Federal-aid highways. Types of high visibility clothing include vests, shirts, pants, hats, gloves and coats.
Try: Refer to Industrial Safety Gear to view the types of high visibility clothing.

Back/lumbar supports

Backaches, pain, and sometimes injury, are a common complaint of individuals whose job duties involve lifting and/or standing for extended periods. Back/lumbar supports can help alleviate backaches, pain and injuries by providing support to the lower back and abdomen as well as keeping the spine in proper alignment. It is a organization's duty to ensure employees recognize the importance of wearing a back/lumbar support and view it as another piece of clothing.
Try: To see different styles of back/lumbar supports, refer to the DocOrtho.com webpage.

Earplugs

Prolonged exposure to noisy environments, such as manufacturing facilities, airports and auto body shops can negatively affect one's hearing abilities. Protect the hearing of your employees by providing safety earplugs or another form of hearing protection, such as quiet bands. Require the use of such ear protection as part of their work uniform.
Try: IndlSafety.com shows earplugs and other forms of hearing protection.

Gloves/hand protection

Gloves and other forms of hand protection are another example of one's safety clothing ensemble. It is important that an individual's gloves fit them properly to prevent hot metal from falling into the glove or worse yet, having loose fitting gloves getting caught on machinery and causing injury to the hand. Depending on the work they perform, types of safety gloves one may choose include leather, Kevlar, mechanics, welding and anti-vibration.
Try: To see the various types of safety gloves, refer to the Discount Safety Gear webpage.

Safety goggles

Eye protection is another important issue organizations face. While some individuals may think they do not need to wear safety goggles, it is important that organizations enforce this policy to prevent eye injuries. The company should ensure employees recognize the value of wearing goggles. There are safety goggles designed for environments such as fire and rescue, welding and laboratories.
Try: Refer to Safety Glasses USA to see the different kinds of safety glasses available.

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