For the average person, an injury to the foot can be costly but not dire. Exercising may slim down to upper body workouts and getting out of the office chair may be painful but does not significantly affect work. For a construction worker or general laborer, the reality may be different. An injury to the foot can be costly financially, with the ability to work delayed for a time.
The human foot contains 26 bones, 33 joints, 107 ligaments and 19 muscles. An injury to any of these causes problems. While the average person may walk 10,000 steps each day, a construction worker or general laborer may walk up to 30,000 steps per day. This need to walk (and to lift and to hold) makes foot protection that much more important.
The statistics about foot injuries in these industries brings up the point:
- Only 23% of workers who sustained foot injuries wore safety boot.
- Employees who suffer a foot or toe injury miss on average seven days of work.
- Of those who were injured while wearing safety boots, the injury occurred on an unprotected part of the boot.
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This brings to mind the importance of not just safety boots but quality safety boots. For example, boots should have ample toe room (12.5mm from the tip of the toe to the front of the boot). The amount of perspiration must be taken into account as well. If a person is in a very active job, their feet can produce 200ml of moisture each day.
Boots can have many different labels and different specializations. For instance, some boots have different toe materials. When looking, it’s important to learn the difference between the best steel toe boots and composite toe boots. Heavy duty work boots may a different design or material than regular work boots.
And understanding the value of the toe–such as steel toe boots–is necessary when in the manufacturing or construction industries.
Whether they are steel toe boots or composite toe boots, a protective toe cap needs to be fixed into the footwear’s interior. There are different classes for men and women, as well as different levels of impact resistance. The two resistance classes are 75 and 50, with 75 having a superior impact resistance than the 50.
Compliance is a necessary part of preventing foot injuries. According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics study of foot injuries, 75% occurred during accidents when the workers were not in compliance.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has attempted to curtail this by having every employer conduct a hazard test to determine the risks of their workplace. And the American Society for Testing and Materials developed standards for workplace safety.
Workplace accidents cost workers, employers, and the economy untold amounts of money each year. Various organizations work to prevent those accidents. When it comes to foot injuries, workplace accidents may be prevented through the use of quality safety boots. Find more on this here.