Answer: Sometimes.

Requirements for eye protection are based upon the presence of hazards in the workplace that could cause injuries to the eyes, including significant levels of slash or freshly fallen timber, burned trees with sharp protruding branches, or winter-logged or recently brushed worksites with a significant level of protruding cut-off stumps and stems.

Mandatory use of eye protection is a decision that must be made by the employer. When deciding if eye protection is required, an employer is required to conduct a risk assessment and seek to find other ways of reducing or controlling the hazards prior to deciding upon the use of PPE. This includes considering the potential negative impacts of using eye protection (such as obscured vision) and weighing those factors against the benefits of protection.

Requirements for eye protection are set out in Section 8.14 of the BC Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, and it is the employer’s duty to provide eye protection when it is deemed to be necessary. However, they are not required to provide prescription protective eyewear, and workers with eyesight prescriptions are required to secure their own prescriptive eyewear or find a model that fits over top of their standard corrective lenses if contacts cannot be worn.

Eye protection used in the workplace must include side protection if there is risk of objects entering from the side of the glasses and must fit the worker properly. This requires the employer to provide multiple size and fit options, and not simply provide one generic type of eye protection for all workers. It is also necessary for lenses to have anti-fog properties to account for potential condensation which is likely to occur with workers who exert themselves and work outdoors.

Many workers have adopted the use of eye protection regardless of employer requirements (or lack thereof) to prevent dirt getting in their eyes and to reduce the impact of sunlight on their eyes. Exposure to UVA and UVB light is cumulative and can lead to degenerative conditions in the eye, including cataracts, ocular melanoma (cancer), and accelerated macular degeneration. Outdoor workers are at an elevated risk for such conditions, and using sunglasses or sports glasses can help reduce such risks while providing some level of protection against other hazards. However, when eye protection is a requirement, the glasses used by workers must meet regulatory requirements, including either CSA or ANSII standards. In recent years, several eyeglass companies have developed more robust and fashionable products that meet applicable safety standards, including items from Bomber Eyewear and Bolle. Most standard safety glasses include UVA and UVB protection.

Employers should be aware that providing low-quality or poorly suited eye protection will likely result in problems for workers in using the eye protection properly. It is recommended for employers to select more durable products with some level of scratch protection, provide hard cases with cleaning cloths to protect the eyewear, and ensure that a variety of choices are available to workers so that vision is not adversely affected or distorted by the glasses.

One tip that can help make it easier to use protective glasses is the use of a headband to prevent sweat from dripping onto the inside of the glasses. Halo headbands provide a product with a small rubber gasket that actually guides sweat toward the side of the head and away from the glasses. This can help maintain clear vision and reduce the need to remove and clean the glasses frequently throughout the day.

Eye injuries are rare in tree planting work and comprise 5.2% of all injuries based on body part based on WorkSafeBC data from 2019 - 2023. However, the potential seriousness of eye injuries makes prevention measures important to protect workers from potentially life-changing injuries. Unlike other body parts, an eyeball can often not be repaired and may not heal after a penetrating injury or other serious damage.