The final rule on Clarification of Employers’ Duty to Provide Personal
Protective Equipment and Train Each Employee was published Dec. 15. The
rule revises OSHA standards to clarify that for employers to be in
compliance, they must provide personal protective equipment (PPE), such
as respirators, and hazards training for each employee covered by the
standards.

Each employee not protected may be considered a separate violation, and
penalties will be assessed accordingly. This revised language is
consistent with language in other standards for which per-employee
citations have been upheld, OSHA says.

The final rule amendments do not add new compliance obligations.
Employers are not required to provide new kinds of PPE or hazards
training or use a different approach than what is already required.
Additionally, employers aren’t required to provide PPE or training to
employees not already covered by existing requirements.

“This technical correction to the PPE standard brings it in line with
other OSHA safety and health standards,” said Acting Assistant
Secretary of Labor for OSHA Thomas M. Stohler. “By making this change,
those few employers who egregiously violate the OSHA PPE standard can
be held fully accountable for violations affecting each employee who is
not provided proper PPE.”

For more information, visit www.osha.gov. Click HERE to read a previous story.