Promoting Inclusiveness in PPE and Uniforms

Local authorities are encountering major challenges with ill-fitting personal protective equipment (PPE), especially impacting women and minority groups. This situation stresses the importance of inclusive PPE programs.

What is Inclusive PPE?

Inclusive PPE programs provide protective equipment designed to meet the diverse needs of the workforce. These programs consider various factors such as:

Sex
Sizes
Abilities
Cultures

Standard PPE sizes often fail to accommodate everyone, potentially leading to safety risks. Inclusive PPE ensures that all workers have access to properly fitting and effective protective gear, thereby enhancing overall safety and performance.

A recent PPE Campaign called ‘Protection for everyone’ highlights that many women are forced to wear PPE designed for men, impacting their confidence, professionalism, and safety.

In an online article published by apse, Katy Robinson, Senior Project Manager at East Riding of Yorkshire Council notes that this issue extends beyond construction into the public sector. She emphasises the need for PPE that considers users' unique characteristics, an example being maternity wear for pregnant workers. Despite the availability of inclusive PPE products, many remain unaware of them.

In summary, promoting inclusiveness is crucial for ensuring the safety and well-being of all workers in the public sector. Local authorities and procurement professionals must prioritise accessible and suitable PPE for everyone to create a more inclusive and supportive work environment.

Our frameworks can help.

The awarded suppliers on both our Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) & Safety Workwear & Uniform, Clothing and Associated Services framework have a range of products that everyone can feel safe and secure in.

These products include:

Maternity wear
Ethnic wear including Turbans, Hijabs, ¾ Length Sleeved Tops and Full-Length Skirts
Equipment & clothing in women’s sizes
And much more

Sources:

Campaign calls on local authorities to improve access to inclusive PPE | New Civil Engineer

Inclusive PPE in the public sector - apse

A Guide to Sourcing Inclusive PPE for Diverse Teams - Safesite (safesitehq.com)

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) & Safety Workwear