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PPE awareness

Each employee or student required to wear PPE must be aware that it does not eliminate the hazard. If the equipment fails or is not worn or used properly, the employee will be exposed to the hazard and may suffer injury or illness. Employees/students must complete PPE Awareness training, receive site-specific training from the PPE Coordinator or other appropriate designated personnel, and demonstrate an understanding of its use and limitations, prior to being assigned tasks requiring the use of PPE.

Note: Training on personal fall arrest systems, electrical protective equipment, respiratory protection, and hearing protection is provided separately. 

Site-specific training provided by the PPE coordinator/principal investigator/supervisor must address the following:

  • Hazards identified during the hazard assessment;
  • Engineering and administrative controls in place for minimizing/eliminating these hazards;
  • Specific PPE to be worn to reduce severity of injury;
  • How PPE is properly fitted, donned, doffed, adjusted, and worn (refer to manufacturers recommendations);
  • Limitations of PPE provided (refer to manufacturers recommendations); and
  • How to properly care for, maintain, inspect, replace, and dispose of the PPE (refer to manufacturer's recommendations and information provided in the appropriate appendices of this program).

Designated PPE coordinators must complete two classes to fulfill this level of training: PPE Awareness and Hazard Assessments. Both classes are available online. 

Where the PPE coordinator elects to conduct awareness level training for personnel (instead of requiring PPE Awareness level training provided by Environmental Health & Safety), or where specialized PPE is used that Environmental Health & Safety training does not address, a written certification of training must be maintained for each employee. This Record of Training must include the name of the trainer, the name of the employee receiving training, the date of training, and the specific types of PPE covered during the training. This record is to be maintained at the departmental level and must be made available to Environmental Health & Safety, or regulatory authorities upon request. 

When there is a reason to believe that an employee using PPE does not have the understanding and skill required to use the equipment safely or properly, the employee must be retrained immediately. Retraining is also required when changes in the workplace render previous training obsolete, or when changes in the type of PPE to be used are made.