Personal Protective Equipment

Safety-toe Footwear

All personnel who are handling material on a regular basis, and all trades personnel shall wear CSA rated safety-toe footwear. Permanent employees shall be reimbursed to the extent authorized for the purchase of safety-toe footwear.  Permanent employees shall contact their supervisor for purchasing procedures prior to making an initial purchase or replacing safety-toe foot wear.  Replacement or repair will be made when safety-toe footwear is worn beyond functional use at the descretion of EHS.

Note: EHS manages the Safety Toe Footwear program and should be contacted by the department supervisor prior to purchase or replacement.

Safety Eyewear

Safety glasses or a face shield shall be worn in all areas where there is a potential hazard of injury to the eyes, (i.e. drilling, grinding, chipping, sandblasting etc.). Full face shields or chemical splash goggles shall be worn when working with hazardous chemicals. Flash glasses must be worn by electrical personnel when undertaking high voltage switching.

Hearing Protection, Audiometric Testing

A base line audiometric test shall be performed on all permanent Facilities Management trades personnel within 1 year of their start date. Contact your supervisor for details.

All reasonable measures will be taken to reduce noise levels or the duration of exposure to levels below WorksafeBC's exposure limits. Where this is not feasible, hearing protection devices shall be provided by the University and worn by the employee. It is recommended that hearing protection be worn when there is prolonged exposure to noise from carpentry equipment, emergency generators and other noise generating equipment.

Ear plugs and/or muffs are acceptable depending on the noise level in the area.

Hard Hats

Hard hats must be worn on all active construction sites where there is a potential of injury to the head from falling objects.