OSHA's Eye and Face Protection standard, 29 CFR 1910.133, requires employers to make sure each affected employee uses appropriate eye or face protection when exposed to hazards from flying particles, molten metal, liquid chemicals, acids or caustic liquids, chemical gases or vapors, or potentially injurious light radiation. The protection must meet a recognized ANSI/ISEA Z87.1 edition and be selected based on a written hazard assessment.
Eye injuries are among the most common and most preventable workplace injuries. Most happen because no eye protection was worn, or because the wrong type was worn for the hazard, such as safety glasses without side protection near grinding or glasses alone during a chemical transfer.
What Is the Eye and Face Protection Standard?
Section 1910.133 sits in OSHA's general industry personal protective equipment rules, 29 CFR 1910 Subpart I. It works together with the general PPE requirements in 1910.132, which require a hazard assessment, employer-paid PPE in most cases, and training. Construction has a parallel rule at 29 CFR 1926.102, and shipyards and marine terminals have their own eye protection sections.
OSHA updated the standard in 2016 to reference newer consensus standards. Eye and face protection must comply with ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2010, Z87.1-2003 or ANSI Z87.1-1989 (R-1998), or be shown to be at least as effective.
Who Must Comply?
Every general industry employer whose employees face eye or face hazards is covered. That includes manufacturing, warehousing, maintenance shops, laboratories, healthcare, utilities, food processing and fleet maintenance. The hazard assessment under 1910.132(d) is where the employer determines which tasks need protection and what type.
Key Requirements
Use appropriate protection for the hazard
Under 1910.133(a)(1), the employer must ensure each affected employee uses eye or face protection suited to the specific hazard. Impact hazards, splash hazards, dust, heat and optical radiation each call for different equipment.
Side protection for flying objects
Under 1910.133(a)(2), when there is a hazard from flying objects, eye protection must provide side protection. Detachable side protectors, such as clip-on or slide-on side shields, are acceptable if they meet the standard.
Prescription lenses
Under 1910.133(a)(3), employees who wear prescription lenses must wear eye protection that incorporates the prescription, or protection that can be worn over prescription lenses without disturbing their position. Ordinary prescription glasses are not safety eyewear.
Manufacturer identification
Under 1910.133(a)(4), eye and face PPE must be distinctly marked to identify the manufacturer.
Filter lenses for injurious light
Under 1910.133(a)(5), employees exposed to injurious light radiation, such as from welding, cutting, brazing or soldering, must use equipment with filter lenses that have a shade number appropriate for the work. The standard includes a table of minimum protective shades. For example, shielded metal arc welding with electrodes under 3/32 inch calls for at least shade 7, rising to shade 11 for electrodes over 1/4 inch. OSHA notes that workers should start with a darker shade and move lighter until the weld zone is visible, without going below the minimum.
Understanding ANSI Z87.1 Markings
Current Z87.1 editions use markings that tell you what a product was tested for. Common markings include:
- Z87: meets basic impact requirements.
- Z87+: meets high-impact requirements.
- Z87-2: prescription safety lenses.
- D3: protection from splashes and droplets.
- D4: protection from dust.
- D5: protection from fine dust.
- W plus a number: welding filter shade.
- U, R, L: ultraviolet, infrared and visible light filters with a scale number.
Matching the marking to the hazard in your assessment is the simplest way to confirm you selected the right product.
Choosing the Right Protection
- Safety glasses with side protection: flying particles from grinding, drilling, sawing or chipping.
- Indirect-vent or non-vented goggles: chemical splashes, dust and mists. Safety glasses do not seal against splashes.
- Face shields: large splashes, molten metal or heavy flying debris. ANSI Z87.1 treats face shields as secondary protectors, so they should be worn over safety glasses or goggles.
- Welding helmets and hand shields: arc welding and cutting, with the correct shade lens and primary eye protection underneath.
- Laser safety eyewear: selected for the laser's wavelength and optical density, under a laser safety program.
Employer Payment and Training
Under 1910.132(h), employers must pay for required PPE. The employer does not have to pay for non-specialty prescription safety eyewear if it allows the employee to wear it off the job site. Under 1910.132(f), workers must be trained on when protection is needed, what to wear, how to adjust and wear it, its limitations, and how to care for it. Employers must certify the training in writing.
Where corrosive materials can splash into the eyes, OSHA's medical services and first aid standard also requires suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing of the eyes.
Penalties and Enforcement
OSHA commonly cites 1910.133 alongside 1910.132 when workers are found without eye protection or using the wrong type. Penalties are adjusted each year for inflation, and a missing or inadequate hazard assessment often leads to a separate citation. Typical findings include employees grinding without side protection, chemical handlers using safety glasses instead of goggles, and face shields worn with nothing underneath.
Common Compliance Mistakes
- Treating a face shield as stand-alone eye protection.
- Allowing ordinary prescription glasses in place of safety eyewear.
- Buying eyewear without checking the Z87 markings against the hazard.
- Using scratched or damaged lenses that impair vision.
- Skipping the written hazard assessment or not updating it when tasks change.
- Not providing eyewash where corrosives are handled.
How to Comply: Step by Step
- Assess hazards. Walk each area and task, list impact, splash, dust, heat and light hazards, and document the assessment.
- Select protection. Match each hazard to the right eyewear, goggles, face shield or filter lens using Z87.1 markings.
- Address prescriptions. Provide prescription safety eyewear or over-the-glasses protection for employees who need it.
- Provide and pay. Make the protection available at no cost where required.
- Train and certify. Train workers on use, fit, limits and care, and keep written certification.
- Inspect and replace. Check eyewear condition during routine inspections and replace damaged items.
- Review after incidents. Re-evaluate protection after any eye injury or near miss.
How SMS360 Helps
SMS360's Audits & Inspections module lets teams run PPE checklists on mobile devices, capture photos of missing or damaged eyewear and turn findings into corrective actions. The Document Library stores written PPE hazard assessments, and Training Management tracks PPE training and certification for every employee.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are regular prescription glasses acceptable as safety glasses?
No. Under 1910.133(a)(3), workers who wear prescription lenses need eye protection that incorporates the prescription or that fits over their glasses without disturbing them.
Can a face shield be used alone?
ANSI Z87.1 classifies face shields as secondary protectors. They should be worn over primary eye protection such as safety glasses or goggles.
Who pays for safety glasses?
The employer pays for required eye protection. An exception applies to non-specialty prescription safety eyewear that the employer allows employees to wear off the job site.
Which ANSI standard applies?
Protection must comply with ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2010, Z87.1-2003 or ANSI Z87.1-1989 (R-1998), or be shown to be equally effective.
