Page 32 - Occupational Health & Safety, December 2017

VISION PROTECTION
The Economics of Safety Eyewear
Eyewear that is uncomfortable or structurally compromised simply doesn’t get worn.
BY PEGGY KROESCH
The statistics could not be more straightfor- ward. According to CDC, 2,000 American workers sustain eye injuries every day. One- third of those workers require hospital treat- ment. Additionally, a study published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates in 37 percent of head in- juries and 62 percent of face injuries involving days away from work, three out of five workers were not wearing eye protection.
The fact that safety eyewear can dramatically re- duce the number of recordable injuries won’t come as news to any professional safety manager. There may be, however, a lack of understanding of the important performance and comfort differences between the opening price point products on the market and the premium offerings. The familiar adage “You get what
you pay for” is dramatically true for safety eyewear. Shopping the low end of the product pool reveals a multitude of truly marginal offerings. The compro- mises necessary to maintain the lowest possible prices are myriad, ranging from the appalling—noncompli- ance with ANSI Z87.1-2015—to the annoying—poor, uncomfortable fit.
Optical clarity often suffers due to cost-cutting concessions. There is no inexpensive way to manufac- ture optical-quality lenses that deliver superior visual acuity. Further, without close examination and under- standing of the materials used, it can be temptingly easy to assume all lenses have essentially the same performance characteristics.
Without the benefit of safety eyewear with optical- quality lenses, workers are very likely to experience some level of visual distortion in their day-to-day ac- tivities. The consequences can range from minor mis- takes in performing simple functions to major mis- haps that can result in severe injuries and significant property losses. Of particular concern is peripheral vision because lower-quality lenses tend to become increasingly less clear as the eye moves away from the central area. Moreover, manufacturers of premium lenses often use the latest and best anti-fogging tech- nologies, reducing annoying and debilitating mois- ture accumulation.
Eye Fatigue Symptoms
While the loss of precision caused by distortion and fogging should be of significant concern, there is an- other consequence of inferior quality lenses for safety managers to consider: eye fatigue. Symptoms of eye fatigue include:
■ Sore or irritated eyes
■ Difficulty focusing and dry or watery eyes
■ Blurred or double vision
■ Increased sensitivity to light
■ Pain in the neck, shoulders, or back
Poor optics, of course, are not the only reason it’s a
nearly universal truth that many workers do not like to use safety glasses or other protective eyewear. With common complaints that include “It’s uncomfortable and unattractive,” fit and even aesthetics are also sig- nificant factors driving antipathy toward a practice so clearly beneficial.
And while safety managers might be able to easily cite the latest statics on the frequency of preventable on-the-job eye injuries from memory, those data may not be all that compelling to an employee who has been forced to wear ill-fitting, uncomfortable eyewear for an extended period of time. And the same data will struggle to make a real difference to a worker who has first-hand experience with the indignity of having
28 Occupational Health & Safety | DECEMBER 2017
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