Who Should Wear a Safety Vest

Who Should Wear Safety Vests?

Discover the many uses of safety vests and how they protect not only workers, but bike riders, joggers and many others from accidents caused by low visibility.

Safety vests help wearers avoid the consequences of low visibility. Low visibility contributes to serious and often fatal accidents. According to ANSI standards, anyone working along a federally funded highway should be wearing a hi-viz lime or orange vest that meets at least Class 2 standards. ANSI Class 2 safety vests are designed for wearers exposed to traffic that exceeds 25 miles per hour. Class II safety vests can also provide the visibility necessary during inclement weather. There are Class 1 safety vests, but most people require protection higher than that of a Class 1 safety vest.

Class I safety vests are for parking attendants, warehouse personnel, workers who retrieve shopping carts from parking lots or those exposed to vehicles moving less than 25 miles per hour. A class I safety vest does not provide sufficient visibility for the majority of workers who are required by ANSI to wear a hi-viz vest.

Class 3 safety vests provide the highest level of high visibility. These vests have short sleeves and are designed for workers who face serious hazards or whose task load requires a shift of attention away from their work. Class 3 vests are vital for workers who deal with traffic that exceeds speeds of 50 miles per hour, and who work in all manner of weather. Those who wear ANSI class 3 vests include utility repair crews, emergency service workers and more.

There is much scrutiny on traffic crews and construction workers when it comes to wearing safety vests, but what about commuters outside the workplace? The economy and high gas prices have caused the percentage of those who commute by scooter to rise exponentially. Often, people who ride scooters do not take their own safety seriously. Scooter deaths and injuries have risen dramatically in the past decade and are often caused by riders being struck by other vehicles. Many of these accidents may have been prevented if the rider had been wearing a safety vest.

Bikers, cyclists and joggers pose the same issue with safety and low visibility. It's time we all contribute to safety and bettering visibility on the roads.

There are many uses for safety vests, both on and off the job. Safety vests are vital pieces of safety apparel and often cost only a few dollars! Safety vests can be ordered online and shipped at a low cost as well. Take your safety and the safety of others seriously.