Employees who work closely with hazardous materials 
need to be protected from contact and inhalation with those materials. As per guidelines provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), employers are responsible for ensuring that all workers are provided with sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE) before they interact with those hazards.
In order to provide PPE at the necessary level, employers need to conduct a hazard safety assessment and see what substances or workspaces could potentially put employees at risk for harm. Knowing the exact hazards that workers could encounter is essential to establishing the type and level of protection the PPE should provide for employees who are wearing it. Check with your Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) classifications as well as standard OSHA guides for the relevant hazard information and resultant PPE requirements.
Protective equipment is not useful if the employees it is meant to be protecting do not know how to use it. As such, it is important for employers to know what equipment is necessary, provide it for workers, and train their staff fully on how to use their PPE and which situations will require that usage. This training should include, but not be limited to, how to put on and remove the PPE, its limitations, and proper maintenance and disposal of the PPE.
Only specialty PPE needs to be provided by employers, however. Everyday clothing like long sleeve shirts or pants are an employee’s own responsibility, as are things like sunscreen and non-specialty closed-toe shoes. Additionally, sometimes PPE is not enough to fully protect employees from harm. At times, extra specialty equipment may be necessary in order to mitigate environmental hazards. This includes things like insulated tools, engineering controls, and other occupational safety measures that serve to add an additional layer of protection between employees and potentially hazardous situations.
