Personal Protective Equipment is mandatory in Gujarat Factories

The Gujarat Factories (Amendment) Rules, 2021

The Gujarat Labour and Employment Department on May 10, 2021 has issued Notification No. GHR/202 1/39/FAC/14202 1/194/M3 for the Gujarat Factories (Amendment) Rules, 2021 to further amend the Gujarat Factories Rules, 1963.

The following amendments have been made:

• Rule 64B, which specifies the quality of personal protective equipment, has been inserted, namely:

“All personal protective equipment provided to workers as required under any of the provisions of the Act or Rules shall conform to the relevant Indian Standards, if any or in the absence of it, personal protective equipment shall be approved by the Chief Inspector of Factories.

Provided that the PPEs not having relevant Indian Standards or not having approval from Chief Inspector of Factories, shall be required to compliant with EN (European Standard) or ANSI (American National Standards Institute) or ISO (International Organization for Standardization), as the case may be, as modified from time to time till the relevant Indian Standard is made available.”

What is personal protective equipment?

Personal protective equipment, commonly referred to as "PPE", is equipment worn to minimize exposure to hazards that cause serious workplace injuries and illnesses. These injuries and illnesses may result from contact with chemical, radiological, physical, electrical, mechanical, or other workplace hazards. Personal protective equipment may include items such as gloves, safety glasses and shoes, earplugs or muffs, hard hats, respirators, or coveralls, vests and full body suits.

What can be done to ensure proper use of personal protective equipment?

All personal protective equipment should be safely designed and constructed, and should be maintained in a clean and reliable fashion. It should fit comfortably, encouraging worker use. If the personal protective equipment does not fit properly, it can make the difference between being safely covered or dangerously exposed. When engineering, work practice, and administrative controls are not feasible or do not provide sufficient protection, employers must provide personal protective equipment to their workers and ensure its proper use. Employers are also required to train each worker required to use personal protective equipment to know:

• When it is necessary
• What kind is necessary
• How to properly put it on, adjust, wear and take it off
• The limitations of the equipment
• Proper care, maintenance, useful life, and disposal of the equipment