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709 Personal Protective Equipment
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709 Personal Protective Equipment

Foot Protection

The employer must ensure that each affected employee wears protective footwear when working in areas where there is a danger of foot injuries due to:

Safety Toe Test
  • Falling or rolling objects
  • Objects piercing the sole
  • Where feet are exposed to electrical hazards

Criteria

Under OSHA Standard 1910.136, protective footwear must be constructed to one or more of three national quality standards:

  1. ASTM F2412-05: The standard test methods for foot protection issued by the American Society for Testing and Materials.
  2. ASTM F2413-05: The standard specification for performance requirements for protective footwear.
  3. ANSI Z41-1991 and Z41-1999: The American National Standards Institute's standards for the quality of protective footwear.

The ANSI standards are now out of date. Manufacturers retired the ANSI Z41 quality standard in March 2005 and replaced it with ASTM F2412 and F2413. It's best practice to issue footwear that has been constructed to the latest ASTM standards.

Steel-Reinforced Safety Shoes

These shoes are designed to protect feet from common machinery hazards such as falling or rolling objects, cuts, and punctures. The entire toe box and insole are reinforced with steel, and the instep is protected by steel, aluminum, or plastic. Safety shoes are also designed to insulate against temperature extremes and may be equipped with special soles to guard against slips, chemicals, and/or electrical hazards.

Safety Boots

Safety boots provide additional protection in environments where splash or spark hazards (chemicals, molten materials) are present.

  • When working with corrosives, caustics, cutting oils, and petroleum products, neoprene or nitrile boots are often required to prevent penetration.
  • Foundry or "Gaiter" style boots feature quick-release fasteners or elasticized insets to allow speedy removal should any hazardous substances get into the boot itself.
  • For electrical work, special electrical hazard boots are available. These are designed without conductive materials except for the steel toe, which is properly insulated.

Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.

5-10. According to OSHA's PPE standard, the employer must make sure that affected employees use protective footwear when working in areas containing which of the following hazards?

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