New OSHA PPE Enforcement Directive

OSHA has issued a new enforcement directive to provide general enforcement policy and guidance related to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and to assist OSHA inspectors in conducting workplace inspections.

The new directive, Enforcement Guidance for Personal Protective Equipment in General Industry (CPL 02-01-050) became effective February 10, 2011. It replaces previous inspection guidelines for the PPE standard for general industry workplaces.

Key changes include:

• Clarifies what type of PPE employers must provide and pay for, when employers must pay for PPE or replacement PPE, and when employers are not required to pay for PPE.
  
• Clarifies the PPE payment requirements for PPE worn off the jobsite, for PPE that must remain at the jobsite and for employee-owned PPE.
  
• Recognizes more recent editions of the applicable national consensus standards, and deletes editions of the national consensus standards that PPE must meet if purchased before a specified date.
  
• Sets forth enforcement policies that reflect court and review commission decisions concerning PPE.
  
• Provides guidance that allows employers to use PPE constructed in accordance with the most recent national consensus standards.
  
• Amends the OSHA provision that requires safety shoes to comply with a specific American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard.

Read the new directive here (pdf).

Browse PPE safety signs at ComplianceSigns.com.

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