Despite a legal duty on bosses to provide the correct Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to their staff free of charge, only three in 10 women (29%) told a survey that the PPE they wear to keep them safe at work is specifically designed for women.
Women responding to the survey work in a range of jobs, including in the emergency services, retail and manufacturing, engineering and scientific research.
Many reported that ill-fitting PPE, which isn’t designed to protect women workers, gets in the way of them doing their job safely. For example, the wrong shoes or overalls can increase the chances of tripping, and safety harnesses, belts and body armour can rub against the skin if they do not accommodate breasts or hips.
Published to mark last week’s International Workers’ Memorial Day (28 April), the report also revealed:
The problems are particularly acute when women become pregnant, says the TUC. The survey showed half of women who had been pregnant had been forced to cut back on their normal duties or had to change their role in the run up to giving birth due to suitable PPE not being available or supplied to them.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “I’m shocked that so many women – even those working in frontline emergency services – do not have the right protective clothing to do their jobs safely. Bosses’ complacency risks serious injury. It shouldn’t be hard to ensure protective uniforms come in men’s and women’s sizes.”
[…] TUC: Women put at risk by ill-fitting safety gear. Less than one in three women are given protective clothing specifically designed for women, according to a report from the TUC. Read more – SHP Online […]
I am happy to see a survey was done on this because i have encountered this time and time again. Right now, where i am working it took me 5 pairs of safety boots and i still do not have a suitable size and fit. On one occasion i almost tripped climbing down the stairs offshore because my boots were ill-fitting and the coveralls were too long. For this reason I could not use a surfer offshore because i was afraid that climbing down the ladder to get on the surfer, my shoes would tangle in my pants leg. The… Read more »