7.3: Eye and Face Protection

Employees can be exposed to a large number of hazards that pose danger to their eyes and face. OSHA requires employers to ensure that employees have appropriate eye or face protection when exposed to eye or face hazards from flying particles, molten metal, liquid chemicals, acids or caustic liquids, chemical gases or vapors, potentially infected material or potentially harmful light radiation.

Many occupational eye injuries occur because employees are not wearing any eye protection while others result from wearing improper, inadequate, or poorly fitting eye protection. Employers must be sure that their employees wear appropriate eye and face protection and that the selected form of protection is appropriate to the work being performed and properly fits each employee exposed to the hazard.

Eye Protection for Exposed Employees

OSHA requires that eye protection be routinely considered for use by carpenters, electricians, machinists, mechanics, millwrights, plumbers and pipefitters, sheet metal employees and tinsmiths, assemblers, sanders, grinding machine operators, welders, labors, chemical process operators and handlers, sawyers, timber cutting and logging workers. Employers of employees in other job categories should decide whether there is a need for eye and face PPE through a hazard assessment.

Examples of potential eye or face hazards include:

■ Dust, dirt, metal or wood chips contacting or entering the eye from activities such as chipping, grinding, sawing, hammering, using power tools, or from sources such as strong winds.

■ Chemical splashes from corrosive substances, hot liquids, solvents or other hazardous solutions.

■ Objects swinging into the eye or face, such as tree limbs, chains, tools or ropes.

■ Radiant energy from welding, harmful rays from the use of lasers or other radiant light (as well as heat, glare, sparks, splash and flying particles).

Types of Eye Protection

Selecting suitable eye and face protection for employees should take into consideration the following elements:

■ Ability to protect against specific workplace hazards.

■ Should fit properly and be reasonably comfortable to wear.

■ Should provide unrestricted vision and movement.

■ Should be durable and cleanable.

■ Should allow unrestricted functioning of any other required PPE.

The eye and face protection selected for employee use must clearly identify the manufacturer. Any new eye and face protective devices must comply with any of the following; ANSI Z87.1-2010, ANSI Z87.1-2003, or ANSI Z87.1-1989(R1998) or be at least as effective as this standard requires.

Some of the most common types of eye and face protection include the following:

■ Safety spectacles.

These protective eyeglasses have safety frames constructed of metal or plastic and impact-resistant lenses. Side shields are available on some models.

■ Goggles.

This tight-fitting eye protection completely covers the eyes, eye sockets, and the facial area immediately surrounding the eyes and provide protection from impact, dust and splashes. Some goggles will fit over corrective lenses.

■ Welding shields.

Constructed of vulcanized fiber or fiberglass and fitted with a filtered lens, welding shields protect eyes from burns caused by infrared or intense radiant light; they also protect both the eyes and face from flying sparks, metal spatter and slag chips produced during welding, brazing, soldering and cutting operations. OSHA requires filter lenses to have a shade appropriate to protect against the specific hazards of the work being performed in order to protect against harmful light radiation.

■ Laser safety goggles.

These specialty goggles protect against intense concentrations of light produced by lasers. The type of laser safety goggles an employer chooses will depend upon the equipment and operating conditions in the workplace.

■ Face shields.

These transparent sheets of plastic extend from the eyebrows to below the chin and across the entire width of the employee’s head. Some are polarized for glare protection. Face shields protect against potential splashes or sprays of hazardous liquids, droplets, and particles but will not provide adequate protection against impact hazards. Face shields used in combination with goggles or safety spectacles will provide additional protection against splash and impact hazards.

Each type of protective eyewear is designed to protect against specific hazards. Employers can identify the specific workplace hazards that threaten employees’ eyes and faces by completing a hazard assessment as outlined in the earlier section.