No matter where you work – in a factory, laboratory, construction site, or office – workplace eye injuries can and do occur. Regardless of what you do, protecting your eyes is an important part of your job. Every day, more than 2,000 American workers suffer an eye injury that requires medical attention. And nearly a million Americans have lost some of their sight due to an eye injury. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, these injuries account for more than $300 million in lost time, medical expenses, and worker compensation. The good news is that most workplace eye injuries are preventable – but, different types of jobs call for different ways to protect your eyes. It’s important to know what works best for your occupation.

Putting Safety Eyewear to Work

Wearing proper safety eyewear is one of the easiest and most effective ways to reduce workplace eye injuries. An estimated 90% of workplace eye injuries could be avoided with the proper use of safety eyewear.³ In fact, nearly three out of five people who suffered eye injuries at work were wearing no vision protection at all.

What should be worn depends on the work that’s being done. For example, if you’re on a construction site, you’ll want to wear safety eyewear that protects your eyes from flying objects, dust, particles, tools, and other hazards. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires employers to make sure their workers have suitable eye protection. According to OSHA, selecting the most suitable eye protection for employees should take into consideration:

• Ability to protect against specific workplace hazards
• Should fit properly and be reasonably comfortable to wear
• Should provide unrestricted vision and movement
• Should be durable and cleanable
• Should allow unrestricted functioning of any other required personal protective equipment (PPE)

All eye protection should be certified by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as ANSI Z87.

IndustrialEyes

IndustrialEyes Safety Eyewear Program is a discount program for DeltaVision® customers with 13 participating LensCrafter locations in Wisconsin. And IndustrialEyes is easy for employers, too. All they have to do is fill out a quick authorization form, and after employees purchase safety eyewear, employers will simply be invoiced for the purchase unless they opt for a fully employee-paid arrangement. That’s it.

Protecting Against Infection

Certain fields of work, like health care, laboratory, janitorial, and animal care environments, face an increased risk of eye infection and exposure to toxic substances. If you work in these fields, it’s important to consider special eye protection to reduce the risk of exposure to both minor and major illnesses and injuries via the eye.

Annual Eye Exams: A Smart Move for Any Career

One of the most important steps you can take to protect your eyesight at work—and everywhere else—is to get an annual eye exam. Exams can help your doctor uncover any potential damage from prior eye injuries, which you may not even be aware of, as well as look for signs of serious eye conditions like glaucoma and cataracts. Your vision is priceless. And it’s likely you need it to get the job done. Wearing the correct protective eyewear and visiting your eye doctor at least once a year are proven ways to help keep your eyes safe and working for you for many years to come. Find a DeltaVision provider near you today.