subject: Eye Protection In The Work Place [print this page] Eye injuries in the work place are very common occurrences. It has been found that of all of the work-related eye injuries, ten to twenty percent will cause either temporary or a permanent loss of vision. The sad thing about this is the fact that it is believed that over 90 percent of all eye-related injuries could be avoided through the use of eye protection of some kind.
Some of the most common causes of eye injuries at work include flying objects, tools, airborne particles and exposure to harmful chemicals. In order to eliminate the risk of receiving an eye injury at work, it is highly recommended that you have on some type of safety eye wear whenever there is even a remote chance of an eye injury happening. This goes for both the person(s) working in the area and for those who may be passing by. Having your vision compromised even slightly would very disruptive to your life in many ways.
Of course, the type of eye protection you should wear all depends on the particular hazards you face at work. If you work in an environment that is subjected to flying objects, dust or airborne particles, you should wear safety glasses equipped with side shields. If you work with chemicals, the best choice is goggles which fully cover the entire area around both eyes. For anyone doing welding or working with fibre optics or lasers, there are specific types of safety glasses, shields and goggles made for those purposes.
When choosing protective eye wear, it is very important to look for quality instead of trying to save a bit of money by buying the least expensive models. Cheap goggles and safety glasses are often heavy, easily scratched and are not considered safe. A strong blow could in fact break the cheap glass or plastic lenses that are often found in low quality eye wear, which could lead to a very serious injury to the eyes. On the other hand, eye wear consisting of polycarbonate lenses are ideal as they are lightweight, not likely to fog up or scratch and they provide a high degree of resistance to breakage.
You should be sure that the proper type of wear eye protection is offered at work. If you are unsure of which type is best suited for the kind work that you do, you should take the time to find a company health and safety official (or someone else who is qualified) to give you the right advice and to provide you with suitable eye protection equipment.
There are very specific laws in place in the UK regarding eye safety regulation which all employers must comply with. It is estimated that over 600 eye injuries happen each day at places of employment all across the UK, which were caused by people neglecting to wear eye protection in hazardous work areas. To avoid this from happening, it is every company's responsibility that appropriate safety eye glasses, shields, goggles and helmets are available to both employees and visitors.
