Do you know the various functions of safety goggles?

Safety goggles can protect the wearer’s eyes from flying debris, dust, smoke and corrosive chemicals. They are used in hazardous environments and therefore, are made for the safety of the eyes. They act as a shield against injuries, benefiting your overall eye health. In the construction industry, goggles are a must when working with dangerous equipment and materials. 

Eye injuries can happen at any point in the workplace. In the 2018/19 reporting year, RIDDOR data shows there were 69,208 company-reported non-fatal workplace injuries to employees in Great Britain. Labour Force Survey (LFS) data reports another 581,000 self-reported injuries, totalling 650,208 workplace injuries for that recorded year. Of head injuries, 814 were related specifically to the eye (this totals 1% of all injuries). 

Injuries can include getting solid particles into the eye, smaller particles, such as smoke, or even injury by chemical burns or from sources such as welding torches or X-Rays. Blunt force trauma can also occur., Eye protection is extremely important in the workplace, especially in certain circumstances such as welding and handling of corrosive materials or working around dangerous equipment. But how can you protect your eyes in the workplace? Eltham Workwear explores.

How can I protect my eyes in the workplace?

You can protect your eyes by wearing safety goggles any time that you are around materials, liquids or substances that can cause eye injury or irritation. Eye protection is vital to employee safety as it can protect your employees from harm. It may come as a surprise but there is no legislation about eye protection in the workplace. However, employers must follow the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, which is why risk assessments should be carried out to identify potential hazards so then they can be controlled or prevented, simply by wearing protective workwear such as safety goggles. It is the employer’s responsibility to provide eye protection for their employees and should encourage their employees to report any hazards or eye injuries, so better risk assessments can be conducted. 

Eltham Workwear has a selection of various safety goggles. We also have lens cleaning wipes, replacement lenses and spectacle bags. Click here to browse our wide collection of safety workwear. 

Get in touch

Eltham Workwear & Safety is a distributor and supplier of quality workwear and PPE to the UK market. Our head office is based in Dartford, with another branch in Portslade, Sussex. We offer both B2C and B2B solutions via our website and our dedicated sales staff. We deliver to London, Essex, Kent, Sussex, Surrey, and Hertfordshire, and we use DHL for deliveries to the rest of the UK.

Please get in touch with our friendly team if you need any advice or to speak about how we can help you with safety workwear. For an additional cost, we can even add your logo to all manners of garments and items; from caps and hard hats to fleeces and jackets using various methods of personalisation. Please click here to find out more.