PPE is equipment worn to minimise exposure to hazards that can cause workplace injuries and illnesses. These injuries and illnesses may result from contact with chemical, radiological, physical, electrical, mechanical, or other workplace hazards. PPE may include items such as gloves, safety glasses and shoes, earplugs or muffs, hard hats, respirators, coveralls, vests and full body suits.

All PPE should be safely designed and constructed, and should be maintained in a clean and reliable fashion. It should fit comfortably: if it  does not fit properly, that can make the difference between being safely covered or dangerously exposed.

When engineering, work practice, and/or administrative controls are not feasible or do not provide sufficient protection, employers must provide personal protective equipment to their workers and ensure its proper use. When PPE is provided, it is the worker’s responsibility to use it.