Q&A: Are slip-resistant shoes PPE and must employers provide them?

Are slip-resistant shoes considered PPE? Is the employer required to provide them?

Slip-resistant shoes are PPE that must be worn by workers IF the employer’s written hazard assessment shows that workers are exposed to slippery conditions during their normal job functions, and engineering and safe work practice controls do not eliminate the slip hazards. OSHA’s PPE rule at 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1910.132(d) requires every employer to “assess the workplace to determine if hazards are present, or are likely to be present, which necessitate the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). If such hazards are present, or likely to be present, the employer shall select, and have each affected employee use, the types of PPE that will protect the affected employee from the hazards identified in the hazard assessment….”

The employer must provide workers with slip-resistant footwear when the hazard assessment shows that conditions at work require footwear with special slip-resistant soles (for example, rubber) not found on ordinary footwear for everyday use to protect workers from slip injuries. See the OSHA interpretation letter that explains a slippery condition when the employer must provide footwear with specialty soles not found on ordinary work-home footwear (rubber soles for slip-resistance) at no cost to the worker.

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