New high-visibility garment regulations taking effect on November 25th will affect many professionals, including road crews, surveying crews, crossing guards, delivery truck drivers, tow truck drivers, forestry works, construction crews, flagging crews, law enforcement personnel;, utility crews, toll both operators, emergency personnel and anyone work on or near a road or construction equipment.
According to the FHWA anyone whose duties expose them to traffic or working on or near construction equipment are required to wear high visibility clothing. EngineerSupply carries an extended line of safety vests that meet the new government regulations, including Seco utilities vests. The Seco safety vests were created with the California DOT to comply with the new regulations.
When ordering a safety vest make sure it is compliant with ANSI/ISEA regulations. The vests are then assigned a class by their level of visibility, class 1, class 2 and class 3. (Class 3 is the most visible.) According to the new regulation, “All workers within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid highway who are exposed either to traffic… or to construction equipment within the work area shall wear high-visibility safety apparel.” that complies with ANSI/ISEA 107-2004, class 2 or 3.
It is recommended to go with the class 3 safety vests if you have any doubt as to which class you fall into. If someone is injured and they were wearing the wrong safety vest the employer could be held liable. If any of your current safety vests are faded this could be putting you or your employees at risk and it is recommended that you replace them.
This is only a reference guide and is not an exhaustive list of the new regulations. For more information on the new regulations please visit,
http://www.workzonesafety.org/files/documents/laws_regulations/federal/nov_24_06.pdf
