How To Choose The Right Workplace Safety Gloves For Your Industry April 27 2018

Workplace gloves are a must. Period.

But not all workplace gloves are good for your industry.

Buying the right workplace gloves will help you save cost on medical emergencies because hand injuries send around a million workers to emergency departments every year.

Unfortunately, many of those workers had the wrong gloves on. Or their gloves didn't fit.

Here’s how to choose the right workplace safety gloves for your industry.

Measure new and old employees’ hands for gloves

Yes, you have to measure your employees’ hands for gloves so you get the right gloves that fit. When gloves don’t fit they simply don’t offer sufficient protection. And they also reduce your employees’ ability to use their hands freely and as seamlessly as possible.

This is why you have to measure new employees’ hands for gloves purchase or replacement for old employees.

Know the type of gloves that meet your workplace needs

There are different types of gloves and they offer varying degree of protection depending on your industry.

Here are the types of gloves and the protection they provide:

Cotton and fabric gloves: If you need your employees’ hands clean and protected against abrasions, then this may be the type of gloves you need so long as they don’t handle work with rough or sharp materials.

Leather gloves: Does your workplace routine involves welding? Get leather gloves to protect your employees’ against sparks and moderate heat. The risk of cuts and abrasions also can be minimized by wearing leather gloves.

Coated fabric gloves: If your work involves the use of moderately concentrated chemicals then the coated fabric gloves are right for you. They're typically used in laboratory work provided they are strong enough to protect against the specific chemical being handled.

Chemical/liquid-resistant gloves: These include natural latex/rubber gloves for water solutions or acids, alkalis, salts, and ketones handling. Also butyl rubber gloves are needed for nitric acid, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid and peroxide handling while neoprene gloves provide protection for hydraulic fluids, gasoline, alcohols and organic acids handling. Not forgetting nitrile rubber gloves for chlorinated solvents handling.

Rubber, plastic or synthetic gloves: Go for these types of gloves if you work with oils, solvents and other chemicals.

Aluminized gloves: These gloves are also great for welding, furnace and foundry work

Kevlar gloves: They are cut- and abrasion-resistant and provide protection against both heat and cold.