Guide to the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application)

Guide to the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application)
Washing facilities
To be adequate and suitable, facilities for washing should include running hot and cold, or warm, water
as well as soap and clean towels (the single towel for use by many should be discouraged) or other
suitable means of cleaning or drying. Washing facilities should be conveniently located, be near to the
sanitary facilities and large enough to facilitate washing of face, hands and forearms.
Separate washing facilities and/or showers should be provided for men and women except when the
facilities are provided in a room intended to be used by only one person, the door of which is capable
of being secured from the inside. Separate facilities are not necessary for washing the hands, forearms
and face only.
Hot water temperatures must be controlled so as to prevent scalding.
Showers are necessary where workers are exposed to heavy physical work or to offensive/harmful
substances where ongoing skin and hair contamination must be prevented.
The provision of emergency showers is sometimes required under other legislation for first-aid
purposes such as when handling acids or alkalis.
Washing facilities should have adequate lighting, be sufficiently ventilated, adequately protected from
the weather, appropriately maintained and kept clean.
Employers may arrange amongst themselves to jointly provide facilities – an example of this would be
the sharing of facilities in shopping centres.
Regulation 21: Changing rooms and lockers
21. (1) An employer shall provide or cause to be provided—
(a) appropriate changing rooms for persons at work if they have to wear special work
clothes and if, for reasons of health or propriety, they cannot be expected to change in
another area, which are—
(i) easily accessible,
(ii) of sufficient capacity, and
(iii) provided with seating,
(b) separate changing rooms or separate use of changing rooms for men and women, and
(c) adequate provision for drying wet or damp work clothes.
(2) If circumstances so require where work clothes are likely to be contaminated by dangerous
substances, atmospheric conditions or the conditions of the place of work, an employer shall
provide, or cause to be provided, facilities in changing rooms to enable working clothes to
be kept in a place separate from personal clothing and effects.
(3) If changing rooms are not required as referred to in paragraph (1), the employer shall
ensure that every person at work is provided with a place to store his or her own clothes and
personal effects.
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