Stay safe by choosing the right gloves

When working with pesticides, it is important to always wear the proper personal protective equipment. Product labels provide the minimum PPE requirements that must be worn when handling containers, spraying, mixing, loading, or conducting maintenance on the sprayer.

Chemical-resistant gloves are listed as required PPE for almost all pesticide-related activities. Wearing the proper gloves when handling products prevents exposure to the skin on the hands.

Pesticides can penetrate skin on different parts of the body to varying degrees. While the skin on the palms is thicker, exposure to the hands also poses a risk of exposing other parts of the body where pesticides can absorb more readily.

The PPE section of the label lists what materials are chemically resistant to the ingredients in the product. These materials refer to any of the PPE that will be worn. The included table lists the glove materials that are recommended for use when handling chemicals that contain the associated solvents. The different glove types have ratings ranging from high to none based on their level of resistance to the solvent they are being used with.

The ratings explanation for the types of materials is listed below:

• High: Glove materials with this rating are highly resistant to the associated solvent. These types of gloves should be cleaned or replaced at the end of each use or end of the day. They should still be rinsed off at rest breaks to reduce the potential for exposure.
• Moderate: Glove materials with this rating are moderately resistant to the associated solvent. These types of gloves should be cleaned or replaced within one to two hours of exposure.
• Slight: Glove materials with this rating are slightly resistant to the associated solvent. These types of gloves should be cleaned or replaced within 10 minutes of exposure.
• None: Glove materials with the none rating have no resistance to the associated solvent. These should not be used.

For more information, see Chapter 10 of the EPAs Label Review Manual. The complete manual is available online here.