Personal Protective Equipment
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is designed to protect
employees from serious workplace injury or illness resulting from
contact with chemical, radiological, physical, electrical, mechani¬
cal, or other workplace hazards that cannot be eliminated. PPE is
a supplementary form of protection when hazards have not been
controlled through engineering or administrative controls.
Aren 't all hard hats the same?
No. You must wear the right hat for the job. All hard hats
approved for electrical work made since 1997 are marked “Class
E.” Hard hats made before 1997 are marked “Class B.’’ These
markings will be on a label inside the
helmet or stamped into the helmet
itself. Newer hats may also be
marked “Type 1” or “Type 2.” Type
1 hard hats protect you from impacts
on the top of your head. Type 2 hard
hats protect you from impacts on the
Head Protection top and sides of your head.
Classes of Hard Hats
Class G (formerly Class A)
❖ General service (e.g., mining, building construction, ship¬
building, lumbering and manufacturing).
♦> Good impact protection but limited voltage protection.
Class E (formerly Class B)
❖ Electrical work.
♦> Protects against falling objects and high-voltage shock and
burns.
Hazard — Improper Grounding: May allow a person
contact with energized circuit or equipment.
Never use
a three-
prong
grounding
plug with
the third
prong bro¬
ken off.
1910.304(g)(5): The path to ground from circuits, equipment,
and enclosures shall be permanent, continuous, and effective.
Exits and Egress Hazard Control
❖ Controls to ensure proper and safe means of egress include:
• Minimum access to exit width of 28 inches.
• Generally, two exits should be provided.
• Exits and access to exits must be marked.
♦> Means of egress, including stairways used for emergency
exit, should be free of obstructions and adequately lit;
where applicable, exits with wheelchair access should be
designated.
•> Employees must be aware of exits and trained in evacuation
procedures.
The floor plan of a multi¬
story building should show
location of stairways and
elevators. Plan must indicate
that stairs, not elevators, are
the appropriate means of
exit in case of emergency.
Assembly Area
® You are here
Photo Source [floorplanj :
http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/evacuation/floorplan_demo.html
Class C
❖ Designed for comfort; offers limited protection.
Protects heads that may bump against fixed objects, but
does not protect against falling objects or electrical shock.
•> The department has many publications that will assist you
in addressing hazards in your workplace. Please visit:
www.nclabor.com/pubs.htm
Occupational Safety and Health
Sources of Information
You may call 1-800-NC-LABOR to reach any division of the
N.C. Department of Labor; or visit the NCDOL home page on
the World Wide Web: http://www.nclabor.com.
Occupational Safety and Health Division
Mailing Address: 1101 Mail Sendee Center. Raleigh. NC 27699-1 101
Office Location: 111 Hillsborough St.
(Old Revenue Building, 3rd Floor)
Telephone: (919) 807-2900 Fax: (919) 807-2856
For information concerning education, training and interpre¬
tations of occupational safety and health standards, contact:
Education, Training and Technical Assistance Bureau
Mailing Address: 1101 Mail Sendee Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1 101
Office Location: 111 Hillsborough St.
(Old Revenue Building, 4th Floor)
Telephone: (919) 807-2875 Fax: (919) 807-2876
For information concerning occupational safety and health
consultative services and safety awards programs, contact:
Consultative Services Bureau
Mailing Address: 1 101 Mail Sendee Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1 101
Office Location: 111 Hillsborough St.
(Old Revenue Building, 3rd Floor)
Telephone: (919) 807-2899 Fax: (919) 807-2902
For information concerning migrant housing inspections and
other related activities, contact:
Agricultural Safety and Health Bureau
Mailing Address: 1101 Mail Sendee Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1101
Office Location: 11 1 Hillsborough St.
(Old Revenue Building, 2nd Floor)
Telephone: (919) 807-2923 Fax: (919) 807-2924
For information concerning occupational safety and health
compliance, contact a Compliance field office:
Asheville Field Office
204 Charlotte Highway, Suite B, Asheville, NC 28803-868 1
Telephone: (828) 299-8232 Fax: (828) 299-8266
Charlotte Field Office
901 Blairhill Road, Suite 200, Charlotte, NC 28217-1578
Telephone: (704) 665-4341 Fax: (704) 665-4342
Raleigh Field Office
Mailing Address: 1 1 01 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1101
Office Location: 3801 Lake Boone Trail. Suite 300
Telephone: (919) 779-8570 Fax: (919) 420-7966
Wilmington Field Office
1200 N. 23rd St., Wilmington, NC 28405-1824
Telephone: (910) 251-2678 Fax: (910) 251-2654
Winston-Salem Field Office
4964 University Parkway, Suite 202, Winston-Salem, NC 27106-2800
Telephone: (336) 776-4420 Fax: (336) 767-3989
For statistical information concerning program activities,
contact:
Planning, Statistics and Information Management Bureau
Mailing Address: 1 1 01 Mail Service Center, Raleigh. NC 27699-1101
Office Location: 111 Hillsborough St.
(Old Revenue Building, 2nd Floor)
Telephone: (919) 807-2950 Fax: (919) 807-2951
To make ait OSH complaint,
OSH Complaint Desk: (919) 807-2796
1,000 copies of this public document were printed at a cost of $ 146, or S.14 per copy.
TOP TEN OSH VIOLATIONS
CITED BY NCDOL IN 2010
N.C. Department of Labor
Cherie Berry
Commissioner of Labor
OSH Division Administration and Enforcement
In North Carolina, NCDOL inspectors enforce the
federal Occupational Safety and Health Act through a
state plan approved by the U.S. Department of Labor.
The Occupational Safety and Health Division of the
N.C. Department of Labor offers many educational
programs to the public and produces publications,
including this guide, to help inform people about their
rights and responsibilities regarding occupational
safety and health.
When looking through this brochure, please
remember the mission of the N.C. Department of
Labor is greater than just to enforce regulations. An
equally important goal is to help people find ways to
create safe workplaces. This brochure, like the many
other educational materials produced by this depart¬
ment, can help. Reading and using this information
will aid you in developing a safety and health pro¬
gram that saves lives.
Compliance assists employers in improving their work¬
place safety and health programs to eliminate on-the-job
injuries and illnesses through enforcement activity.
Consultative Services provides free on-site consulta¬
tion regarding both safety and health issues. Services
are provided to employers of limited size and to
employers within high-hazard industries, assisting
them to reach their goal of achieving a safe and
healthful workplace for their employees.
Education, Training and Technical Assistance
(ETTA) offers educational materials, arranges confer¬
ences and provides professional training for OSH
staff members and for the public. The bureau also
offers assistance with standards interpretation. In
addition, ETTA administers the adoption of federal
standards and develops North Carolina-specific stan¬
dards, responds to requests for technical assistance
and interpretations, and publishes a wide variety of
industry guides, safety and health standards books for
general industry and construction, and other docu¬
ments of interest to the public.