The transition of all enterprises from January 1, 2025 to Uniform Model Standards for the Distribution of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and the development of relevant local regulations turned out to be processes full of difficulties for employers, fraught with formal violations and subsequent fines. Leading industry experts at the session «The practice of forming local regulations on the provision of workers with PPE» as part of the IX St. Petersburg International Labor Forum and the CUBE EXPO exhibition «Personnel. Management. Safety» analyzed the most common mistakes of enterprises and suggested how to optimize the cost of purchasing PPE.

Natalia Semchenkova, Head of the Professional Risk Management System at Technoavia-Saint Petersburg LLC, suggested four steps to develop internal standards for enterprises based on Uniform Model Standards for Distribution of PPE from the relevant order of the Ministry of Labor: select a basic set of PPE in accordance with the position, select a set of PPE for identified hazards, select dermatological personal protective equipment and flushing agents, and, finally, form internal standards for the distribution of PPE.

She noted that in order to comply with the law, it is very important to correctly prescribe the grounds for distributing a PPE, and this is not just a general reference to the order of the Ministry of Labor, but a detailed reference to specific points and appendices. Natalia Semchenkova also predicted that 2025 will be a period of fines due to the start of law enforcement practice, but by 2026 the market will learn how to work correctly with Uniform Model Standards.

The compatibility of personal protective equipment has become a popular practical nuance, which was noticed by several speakers at once. For example, if a helmet and headphones are intended to protect an employee, then they must be mutually adapted to use. In an incompatible case, the employee will not be able to use one of the means of protection correctly, and this is a violation.

Tatiana Pilipenko, Deputy General Director of Vostok-Service-Specialcomplex JSC, noted that it was very important to properly organize the purchase of PPE and draw up a technical specification. Special attention, for example, should be paid to the duration and frequency of work related to the effects of harmful and dangerous industrial factors, since the number of PPE provided for delivery and operation may depend on this.

«Previously, it was possible to extend the service life of PPE, but now it is not. A one-day delay will actually lead to the fact that you will be found to have violated the Labor Code. Therefore, start all procurement procedures in advance,» advised Tatiana Pilipenko. In addition, it is worth taking protective equipment with a reserve, because according to the new rules, it is forbidden to transfer PPE for individual use to another employee after the employee has left.

It is equally important to monitor the validity of the PPE compliance documents, as the certificate may be suspended. According to Sergey Frolov, the head of CERTICA PPE LLC, the reasons for the suspension include data inconsistencies, incomplete test protocols, use of other certificates that have already been used, and lack of information about conducting inspection control on time.

He also identified a problem that requires systemic improvement. There appeared a difficulty in labeling gloves. The codes of the commodity nomenclature of the EEA FEA are available, but there is no state structure authorized to classify products according to the OKPD2 codes. At the same time, there is a letter from the Ministry of Industry and Trade about the need for both codes for labeling.

In addition to difficulties with registration, counting and prescribing, enterprises may also face difficulties from employees. Harsh men working in production are not always ready to be responsible enough about safety, especially when it comes to dermatological protective equipment.

At the same time, the employer is obliged to ensure their application, otherwise he risks being fined. Anna Andreeva, Director of Strategic Development at Security Laboratory LLC, suggested that the approach has proven strategically effective, in which ensuring the law becomes primarily the basis for sincere concern for the health of employees.

Irina Gnezdilova, Head of the Occupational Safety Department at Gazprom Energo LLC, shared the practical nuances of developing standards for the issuance and provision of PPE and DPPE (dermatological personal protective equipment). She showed how she had marked the typology in the documentation in different colors: mandatory PPE is highlighted in green, additional PPE for «workers in working professions» is highlighted in gray, winter PPE is indicated in blue, and dermatological PPE is indicated in orange.

Irina Gnezdilova also spoke about the optimization experience in terms of compatibility of different PPE. For example, «suit for protection against harmful biological factors» and «suit for protection against mechanical influences» can be replaced by «suit for protection against harmful biological factors and mechanical influences». At the same time, she stressed that work in this area is still underway, and the organization is waiting for changes and amendments to regulatory documents.