Hard hat requirements on a construction site

On construction sites, workers must wear safety hats or head protection that adheres to specific standards to protect against head injuries. These standards include:

• Safety hats designed and manufactured in accordance with CAN/CSA Standard Z94.1, applicable at the time of manufacturing. [1]

• CSA Standard Z94.1-05 or CAN/CSA-Z94.1-15, Industrial protective headwear - Performance, selection, care, and use

• ANSI Standard ANSI/ISEA Z89.1-2009 or ANSI/ISEA Z89.1-2014, American National Standard for Industrial Head Protection. [3]

In addition to the general requirements, some regulations specify:

• If there is a significant possibility of lateral impact to the head, protective headwear that is appropriate to the hazards and meets specific requirements must be worn. [4]

• If a worker may contact an exposed energized electrical conductor, approved industrial protective headwear that is of adequate dielectric strength to protect the worker must be provided and used. [2]

Furthermore, employers are often required to provide liners for headwear to protect workers from cold conditions and retention systems to secure the headwear firmly to the worker's head, especially in conditions that may cause the headwear to dislodge.