The problem of purchasing and issuing workwear in organizations was, is and will be, because the budget is very sensitive to the cost of PPE.
Many people are constantly underfunded, and it doesn’t matter what amount you budgeted for during the annual budgeting. Upon review, they will definitely cut back, especially in the conditions of an eternal crisis in the country, when everyone survives as best they can.
Therefore, in this article we will look at how to extend the period of wearing PPE in order to save money without compromising the life and health of workers, and what documents need to be completed so that the employer feels protected.
If after reading the article you have something to add, then join in the comments, ask questions, give examples from practice and just keep up the dialogue.
Extending the wearing period of workwear
Extending the period of wearing special clothing is a very controversial issue, and if organized without adhering to the Ministry of Health and Social Development No. 290n, then administrative liability is inevitable.
There is judicial practice that suggests that everything seems to have been done correctly, but there is no additional information and the employer faces administrative liability for failure to provide personal protective equipment to workers.
Therefore, think 100 times whether you really need it, and then decide whether you should save money due to risks in the future, because PPE comes in different classifications and not every type can be extended.
But it is necessary to talk about how to draw up an act for extending the period of wearing workwear and provide a sample because of the large number of questions, especially from budgetary organizations.
They have eternal problems with financing, and besides, workwear is purchased through a contract system in the procurement sector, and this is a very long process and it turns out that the period of wearing workwear for workers ends even before purchasing new ones.
How to extend the wearing period of PPE
All legal requirements concerning the procedure for the acquisition, issuance, use, storage and care of PPE are established by the Intersectoral Rules for Providing Workers with Work Clothing, Safety Footwear and Other Personal Protective Equipment (Order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development No. 290n).
And to begin to understand how to extend the period of wearing PPE, you need to note that all issuance, as well as return of personal protective equipment by employees, must be recorded in a personal accounting card.
The period during which an employee uses the personal protective equipment issued to him is indicated in the industry standards for issuing PPE and those developed by the employer. You can read about how to prepare a list of issuing PPE for each position indicating the period of use in my other article.
And this period does not begin to be calculated from the moment of actual use, for example, you were issued winter workwear in the summer and accept for yourself that the wearing period must be counted from October.
This is fundamentally incorrect, because the use of personal protective equipment by an employee begins from the moment of actual issue and the date on the personal card (clause 13 of Order No. 290n).
And, of course, when the time comes to issue new workwear, but the old one is still in good condition, the employer’s natural desire to save money arises.
This situation often occurs among workers such as cleaners, janitors, cloakroom attendants, archivists, and including engineering and technical personnel.
And just like that, on the basis of the commission you created to determine the suitability of PPE, you cannot inspect the workwear, simply draw up a report and automatically allow further use by the employee. It's not that simple.
Because, on the basis of clause 22 of Order 209n, personal protective equipment that was returned by employees at the end of the period of use can be reissued, but after taking care measures, washing, cleaning, repairing, and so on.
That is, it turns out that the employee, in any case, must hand over the workwear to the warehouse when the deadline expires, for example, after 12 months.
Certificate of extension of the wearing period of workwear (sample)
The return of workwear to the warehouse must be recorded in the acceptance certificate, and if it is still in a suitable condition for further use, then the commission must determine the percentage of wear.
Everything about how to determine the percentage of wear and detailed methods to simplify your work is given in this article.
Having determined whether the protective clothing is suitable for further use, it is necessary to record this fact with an inspection report of the personal protective equipment, in which the commission must make a conclusion about the possibility of further use, indicating the period and percentage of wear.
You can use it in your work.
Definitely needs to be duplicated
percentage of wear in the personal clothing issuance card, repeating this procedure for each personal protective equipment.
Because when issuing used PPE to an employee, you will need to indicate that it was issued second-hand with a certain percentage of wear.
For example, a janitor's suit expired in the spring, he returned it to a warehouse, and the commission determined that the percentage of wear and tear was 40%, recording this in the card and in the act.
It was washed, repaired and issued again in the fall, but this time indicating that the issue was used workwear.
Please note that the employer does not have the right to allow an employee to perform his or her job duties without personal protective equipment. After all, it turns out that the employee handed it in on Tuesday, and received it back on Friday, after washing and repairing, and during these three days you simply cannot allow him to work.
This is how the extension of the wearing period of workwear looks in a difficult way. But you need to act in exactly this sequence, because if it doesn’t:
- data on the return of personal protective equipment by the employee,
- documentary evidence that PPE is suitable for further use;
- confirmation of measures taken to care for PPE;
- percentage of PPE wear,
then if an accident occurs, the inspector or the court will come to the unequivocal conclusion that the employee was not provided with personal protective equipment.
Employer's liability
The employer faces a fine for failure to provide PPE for employees, because if a serious, fatal or group accident occurs due to the fact that the organization decided to save, in the amount of:
- for officials and individual entrepreneurs – from 20,000 to 30,000 rubles;
- for legal entities – from 130,000 to 150,000 rubles.
Moreover, there has been similar judicial practice and the judge will adhere to a similar position when considering the case.
Therefore, either do everything right, or don't take risks.
What kind of PPE can be used to extend the wear period?
But, thus, absolutely all workwear that remains in good condition after the wear period has expired cannot be reused. And this begs the question: “What kind of PPE can be used to extend the wear period?”
You need to approach this issue with caution!
Because in addition to the percentage of wear, it is necessary to take into account the protective properties of workwear, which may decrease over time, and accordingly, proper safety of workers will not be ensured.
The Ministry of Labor even says this in its explanatory letter dated November 2, 2021 N 15-2/ОOG-3886, that the period of use of workwear should not exceed the permitted storage period.
And this applies to personal protective equipment that loses its protective properties during storage. This information is marked on personal protective equipment or on packaging; this information can also be found in the passport or instructions (clause 12 of TR CU 019/2011).
And if the passport indicates that the worker can use the PPE only for 2 years, then
the period of
use
cannot be
extended .
If you have simply stored PPE in a warehouse for quite a long time, then before issuing it to an employee, you will have to transfer it to the manufacturer or to a laboratory to determine the protective properties.
You cannot determine this “by eye,” and you should not take such responsibility for the life and health of personnel without knowing for sure whether the protective properties have been preserved or not.
And this event is costly and troublesome, so I do not advise you to take risks and renew only those personal protective equipment that will not be used in harmful and dangerous working conditions.
Procedure and standards for issuing personal protective equipment (PPE)
Each employer is obliged to issue workwear in accordance with established standard standards in accordance with paragraphs. 5.14 Rules No. 290n. In the absence of a position or profession in the approved list, PPE is issued in accordance with the standards of cross-cutting professions/specialties of all areas - the rule applies in accordance with Order of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation No. 997n.
The use of PPE increases the level of employee safety
Moreover, employers reserve the right to determine personal standards and rules for issuing personal protective equipment, however, on the condition that this will achieve the maximum level of safety for workers at the enterprise compared to standard standards (example: provide effective protection against burns).
The procedure for issuing protective equipment is established by Order of the Ministry of Labor No. 997n
Note! Personally developed standards are approved by Management Order or reinforced by local regulations.
Service life for special purpose clothing sets
Special purpose clothing is taken into account in organizations that use it. Storage periods, conditions of use - all this is regulated by specific order of the Ministry of Finance No. 135n. In it, a separate paragraph (clause 5) contains a list of items, be it special footwear, a set of special-purpose clothing, or individual devices such as a belt, helmet, etc.
Each enterprise has its own individual needs, determined by the specifics of its activities. According to the norms of the Order, issued items can be written off immediately if their service life is no longer than 1 year. When clothing is used by personnel for more than 12 months specified by the Order, the asset is written off, moreover, during its SPI, and using the linear method.
The standard service life of workwear sets is described in detail in the standards and separately in the Rules (clause 26).
There are special cases when enterprises can independently extend or reduce the warranty of use.
Duration of use of PPE depending on climatic conditions
Air temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind speed and other weather conditions determine the period of use of clothing and protective equipment. The territory of the Russian Federation is characterized by five climatic zones:
- Zone 1. Region with temperatures down to -1°C. In these weather conditions, jackets and trousers are issued once every three years, boots - once every four years.
- Zone 2. Region with temperatures up to -9.7 °C. The jacket and trousers need to be replaced every two and a half years, boots - three years.
- Zone 3. Region with temperatures down to -19°C. To ensure proper working conditions, new clothes are issued every two years, shoes - every two and a half years.
- Zone 4. Region with temperatures down to -41°C. Clothes are issued every year and a half, shoes - every two years.
- The special belt assumes the same schedule for replacing workwear as belt 4, only it requires additional clothing: a sheepskin coat and mittens (for four years), a hat (for three years).
Some enterprises provide their employees with summer forms of PPE. These include, for example, cotton suits, lightweight models of shoes, hats, and mittens.
Peculiarities
Overalls should be used only for their intended purpose. Kits are not considered the sole property of the employer. And after issuance, the employee should not use the CO outside the work area. If the employee himself deliberately damaged the kit, shortening its service life, the employer has the right to impose a fine on him, including the cost of the damaged CO.
You cannot work without CO or in a damaged suit. This is fraught with various consequences, sometimes even deadly (depending on the specifics of the production). If a loader or security guard can hurt himself or develop calluses without protective gloves, then a builder who goes out without a helmet can die.
Ano dpo "Novgorod Educational and Business Center for Entrepreneurship and Small Business"
This is stated in paragraphs 13, 21 of the Intersectoral Rules, approved by order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia dated June 1, 2009 No. 290n. After the expiration date, issue the employee a new kit.
However, if the products are suitable for further use, then after care measures they can be reissued to the employee. This procedure is established in paragraph 22 of the Intersectoral Rules, approved by order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia dated June 1, 2009 No. 290n.
To establish control over deadlines, the Russian Ministry of Finance recommends putting a stamp indicating the date of issue of protective equipment to employees (clause 63 of the Methodological Instructions approved by Order of the Russian Ministry of Finance dated December 26, 2002 No. 135n). An example of determining the period of wear and the date of replacement of a jacket with an insulating pad for a car driver in Moscow. Car driver Yu.I.
Basic requirements for instructions for use, maintenance, periodic inspection, repair, labeling and packaging" establishes requirements for instructions for use, maintenance, periodic inspection, repair. To determine the suitability for further use of PPE used for protection against electrical hazards, you should use the Instructions for the use and testing of protective equipment used in electrical installations, approved.
by order of the Ministry of Energy of Russia dated June 30, 2003 No. 261. Also by order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy of Russia dated March 28, 2007 No. 97, Methodological Recommendations for determining technical requirements for kits for protection against the effects of electric arcs were approved. For PPE with a “wear-out” period, the employer needs to establish the frequency of checks for suitability for use. ExampleThe frequency of inspections can be one calendar year.
Sanctions for non-compliance with the service life of PPE
Taking into account the degree of violation, the legislation of the Russian Federation provides for penalties for an enterprise whose employees are not properly protected while performing their official duties. If violations of the rules for issuing PPE are detected, the fine will range from 30 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. Repeated violations of the established procedure may result in disqualification of the organization for a period of up to 3 years.
For failure to issue protective clothing, fines vary:
- For entrepreneurs and officials from 20 thousand rubles to 30 thousand rubles.
- For legal entities – from 130 thousand to 150 thousand rubles.
Despite the fact that the equipment of personnel is carried out at the expense of the employer, employees must carefully use PPE and promptly inform authorized persons about damage.
