FAQs – Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is a worker’s last defence against injury and death, when eliminating workplace hazards is not possible.

Everyone in the workplace has PPE responsibilities:

• You are responsible for ensuring a safe and healthy workplace to protect your workers, including providing and maintaining PPE
• Workers are required to wear PPE, and supervisors are required to monitor is use
• Your Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) committee or worker representative participates in addressing issues relation to PPE

When all other measure have been considered and found impractical or ineffective in controlling hazards, PPE may be necessary, either alone or in addition to other measure.

You must provide and pay for all PPE that the job requires except the following, which the worker is responsible for to provide:

• Clothing needed for protection against the natural elements
• Safety headgear
• Safety footwear
• General-purpose gloves. However, if a product or a work activity requires specific gloves to protect the worker, you must provide these gloves.

Select PPE according to the requirements stated in the OHS Regulation:

• Choose PPE in consultation with the worker and the OHS committee, or worker representative as applicable
• Ensure PPE meets a standard acceptable to WorkSafeBC when required. Check the permanent marking or label for the standard

PPE education and training must include:

• How the PPE provides protection from specific hazrds
• How to properly fir and wear it
• When it must be worn
• How to take care of it

Make sure that supervisors/managers regularly monitor that:

• Workers wear the required PPE
• PPE is being maintained and is functioning properly
• PPE issues are addressed

You must include a PPE program as part of your OHS program. Topics include education, training and selection, use, maintenance, and storage of PPE.