Home OSH Answers Prevention & Control of Hazards Personal Protective Equipment Safety Footwear

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If you are at risk for foot injury at your workplace, you should wear the appropriate protective footwear.

• If foot protection is required, set up a complete foot safety protection program including selection, fit testing, training, maintenance and inspection.
• Safety footwear is designed to protect feet against a wide variety of injuries. Impact, compression, and puncture are the most common types of foot injury.
• Choose footwear according to the hazard. Refer to CSA Standard Z195-02 "Protective Footwear" (Reaffirmed 2007).
• Select CSA-certified footwear. Ensure that it has the proper rating for the hazard and the proper sole for the working conditions.
• Use metatarsal protection (top of the foot between the toes and ankle) where there is a potential for injury.

The OSH Answers section on Foot Comfort and Safety at Work has more information on foot care and selection of protective footwear.

Fit:

• Walk in new footwear to ensure it is comfortable.
• Boots should have ample toe room (toes should be about 12.5 mm from the front)
• Make allowances for extra socks or special arch supports when buying boots.
• Boots should fit snugly around the heel and ankle when laced.
• Lace up boots fully. High-cut boots provide support against ankle injury.

Care:

• Use a protective coating to make footwear water-resistant.
• Inspect footwear regularly for damage.
• Repair or replace worn or defective footwear.
• Electric shock resistance of footwear is greatly reduced by wet conditions and with wear.

The following symbols, or markings, will help you determine which footwear is appropriate for the job.

Selection of Safety Footwear
Marking	Criteria	Use
	Green triangle footwear has sole puncture protection with a Grade 1 protective toe (withstand impact up to 125 joules).	Any industrial or heavy work environment, including construction, where sharp objects are present (such as nails).
	Yellow triangle footwear has sole puncture protection and Grade 2 protective toe (withstand impact up to 90 joules)	Light industrial work environments that need both puncture and toe protection.
	White rectangle with orange Greek letter "omega" footwear has soles that provide electric shock resistance.	Any industrial environment where accidental contact with live electrical conductors can occur. (REMEMBER: Electric shock resistance is greatly reduced by wet conditions and with wear)
	Yellow Rectangle with green letters "SD" and grounding symbol footwear has soles that are static dissipative.	Any industrial environment where a static discharge can be a hazard for workers or equipment.
	Red rectangle with black letter "C" and grounding symbol footwear has soles that are electrically conductive.	For any industrial environment where low-power electrical charges can be a hazard for workers or equipment.
	White label with green fir tree symbol footwear provides protection when using chainsaws.	For forestry workers and others who work with or around hand-held chai,nsaws and other cutting tools.
Note 1: The ® symbol indicates the preferred position for the identifying logo or mark or the certifying agency. Note 2: Labels are on the tongue of the right shoe at ankle height. They may also appear at ankle height on the shoe itself (for electrical protection footwear) From: "Z195.1-02 Guideline on Selection, Care and Use of Protective Footwear" , Canadian Standards Association, 2002.

Document confirmed current on August 20, 2007
Document last updated on December 3, 2003

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