CONSTRUCTION SITE PERSONAL INJURY NEWSLETTER

This Newsletter is a monthly update informing the reader of some recent developments in construction site personal injury law.

PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT - WHO PAYS FOR IT?

OSHA has spent several months in investigation, surveys and inquiries to determine the practice for paying for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Does the employer require the employee to obtain PPE from independent sources and pay for it on his own or does the employer provide PPE but require the employee to reimburse the employer? Are there employers who provide PPE and pay for it? In the past, OSHA preferred for employers to both purchase and provide PPE for their employees. In March, 1999, OSHA issued a proposal to clarify this particular issue.

From the OSHA website and its unified agenda, these are the specifics of the proposal:

Employers would be required to provide all OSHA-required PPE at no cost to employees, with the following exceptions:

The employer would not need to pay for safety-toe protective footwear or prescription safety eyewear if all three of the following conditions are met:

1. The employer permits such footwear or eyewear to be worn off the jobsite;
2. The footwear or eyewear is not used in a manner that renders it unsafe for use off the jobsite (i.e., contaminated safety-toe footwear would not be permitted to be worn off the jobsite); and
3. Such footwear or eyewear is not designed for special use on the job.

Furthermore, employers would not be required to pay for logging boots required by 29CFR 1910.266(d)(1)(v).

In arriving at its proposed rule, OSHA undertook to survey purchasing patterns for PPE in a variety of industries, including representative sampling from the construction industry and general industry. Between 6,000 and 7,000 employers were contacted in the survey which is called "Survey on Payment Patterns for Occupational Personal Protective Equipment."

Certainly, to require the employer to pay for equipment which is required by law is the obviously preferable rule. Employers who require their employees to reimburse them for what the employer is legally obligated to provide are simply avoiding the responsibility of the law. Should an employee reimburse the employer for use of a crane? Should an employee reimburse the employer for use of a GFCI? Of course not! To require employees to pay for lanyards, safety harnesses, hard hats and other legally required equipment is an onerous and unnecessary burden. Hopefully, OSHA has clarified this matter so that no employee will have to pay for protective equipment required to be provided by the employer.