Gloves

The law places specific responsibility for managing health & safety on employers and employees.

The Health & Safety At Work Act (1974) places a general duty upon employers to keep employees and others (such as clients) healthy and safe at work.

The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 asks employers to undertake an assessment of any substances used at work that are hazardous to health. Natural rubber latex is a potential allergen and therefore falls into this category.

Based on this, many first aid and medical organisations have withdrawn the use of latex gloves to eliminate the risk of causing harm to the user and the potential of a subsequent court case for compensation.

There are two options available; Vinyl gloves are similar in price and are non-allergenic but do not have the same elasticity as latex and therefore do not fit as well.  They are, however, more durable than latex gloves.  Vinyl gloves are an excellent option for jobs where dexterity is not as important and there may be many used at a time - first aid training or the catering industry for example.

Nitrile gloves are more durable than latex, non-allergenic and more elastic than vinyl.  These are better suited to precision jobs or when quality is important.