How often must the employer provide safety shoes?

“How often does the employer actually have to provide employees with safety shoes?” Sounds like a simple question. But it is not. Yet it is a fundamental question for many employees and employers, and unfortunately not one that is easy to answer. Since this involves such an important issue as employee protection and accident prevention, the expert team at Shoes For Crews has decided to shed some light on the matter. After all, we all want to keep workplace hazards to a minimum! And for that, we do occasionally read legal texts ….

Below, we will therefore look at the fundamental laws and regulations that help us determine where and how often an employer must provide safety shoes. Caution: It is about to get legal – but do not worry, we will translate the paragraphs for you right away!

The Occupational Health and Safety Act (ArbschG)

When must the employer provide safety shoes?

The “Act on the Implementation of Occupational Health and Safety Measures to Improve the Safety and Health Protection of Employees at Work” (sounds terribly complicated), or simply the Occupational Health and Safety Act (shorter, but not exactly exciting either), stipulates that the employer “is required to take the necessary occupational health and safety measures, taking into account the circumstances that affect the safety and health of employees at work.” All clear? 

In plain language: This means that the employer must carry out a risk assessment to determine whether there are workplace hazards that must be addressed with appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). 

An example: You operate a supermarket and part of your workforce works in the adjoining warehouse. Here, there are risks of foot injuries caused by impacts, trapping or crushing from falling objects and forklifts. In this case, as an employer, you are obliged under sections 3 and 4 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act to provide safety shoes. 

You can read about the safety shoe categories in our articles “The new EN ISO 20344:2021 vs. EN ISO 20344:2011: The differences” and “Safety shoes S1, S2 and S3: The differences”.

Who has to bear the costs of safety shoes?

The Occupational Health and Safety Act not only stipulates when safety shoes or other personal protective equipment must be provided, but also who has to bear the costs: 

(3) The employer may not impose the costs of measures under this Act on employees. 

Section 3, paragraph 3 makes it very clear that employers must bear the costs of safety equipment.

DGUV Rule 112-991 “Use of Foot and Knee Protection”

The Occupational Health and Safety Act is a good basis for answering the question “How often must the employer provide safety shoes?”, but the law is not really very specific.

In addition, it can be difficult for non-experts to make sense of legal regulations. The German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV) umbrella association thought so too and therefore published DGUV Rule 112-991. This document contains not only all the important specifications for foot and knee protection, but also practical checklists for hazard analyses, safety shoe requirements and much more.

When must the employer provide safety shoes?

The DGUV rule also addresses the question of when the employer must provide safety shoes. 

The third section on “Measures to prevent hazards to life and health at work” specifies that the employer must carry out a hazard assessment and evaluation and then provide the appropriate equipment. 

What is particularly important here is the assessment of the risk:

“A risk assessment is required in order to select the relevant foot or knee protection according to the type of hazards. It must also take into account when and how often the hazards can actually occur.” 

In Annex 1 of the DGUV rule, you will find practical guidance on which hazards must be covered by foot protection and what a hazard assessment for foot protection should look like. 

If, as an employer, you have identified a relevant hazard, the DGUV rule specifies that you only have to provide foot protection that bears the appropriate CE marking, i.e. certified occupational or safety shoes. You therefore do not have to provide ordinary work shoes.

How often must the employer provide safety shoes?

We now know that you must provide safety shoes if the hazard assessment has identified a need. We have also learned that, as an employer, you must bear the costs, but only if they are work shoes with CE marking. However, the question of “how often” still remains. 

As mentioned in the introduction, this question cannot be answered definitively. While the Occupational Health and Safety Act provides no details on frequency, DGUV Rule No. 3.2.2 states that foot protection must be provided by the employer in sufficient quantities: 

“Under §29 of the accident prevention regulation ‘Principles of Prevention’ (GUV-V A 1), the entrepreneur must provide insured persons with suitable foot and knee protection in sufficient quantities for personal use for the intended purpose.” 

According to the DGUV rule, it has proven effective “for each user to have foot protection available in two versions, which should be worn alternately.” 

Employers and employees must also ensure that safety shoes are in proper condition. If this is not the case, the shoe must be replaced immediately. 

The employer must therefore provide at least one pair of safety shoes and replace them whenever signs of wear or exceeding the recommended service life make this necessary. The DGUV recommends two pairs, but you are not obliged to do so. However, some recommendations are quite good...

The services of Shoes For Crews

Whether you are obliged to provide your employees with safety shoes or are simply looking for a supplier of slip-resistant work shoes to recommend to your staff: We always have exactly the right offer for you.

For example, we offer delivery on container pallets if you, as an employer, must/want to provide safety shoes. And a personalised company website if your employees buy their own shoes at a competitive price. Contact us at any time. We will be happy to advise you!