Employee compliance duties

Yes. Under 1915.9(a) the employer must provide PPE to each employee required to use it, and each failure to provide PPE to an employee may be treated as a separate violation. See the PPE duty in 1915.9(a).

• This means the obligation is per person: if 5 employees need respirators and only 3 receive them, OSHA can cite five separate failures (one for each affected employee).
• Enforcement guidance for specific hazards (for example, beryllium) emphasizes the same per-employee obligations when a standard requires PPE; see OSHA’s Interim Enforcement Guidance for the 2020 Final Beryllium Standards.

Yes. Under 1915.9(b) the training obligation is a separate compliance duty for each affected employee, so failing to train any single employee can be treated as a separate violation. See Training duty in 1915.9(b).

• The employer must train each affected employee in the manner required by the specific shipyard standard that triggers the training requirement.
• If a particular standard prescribes content or frequency, the employer must follow that format for every covered employee.

The employer must provide required PPE to each covered employee; OSHA’s broader payment rule requires employers to pay for PPE required by standards unless a narrow exception applies. See 1915.9(a) and OSHA’s letter about employer PPE payment methods.

• OSHA has stated employers may not shift the cost of required PPE to employees (except limited items excluded by the payment rule); a deposit/return system is allowed if it does not effectively make employees pay for PPE. See the 2014 OSHA interpretation on employee PPE payment methods for practical details.
• If the employer retains ownership and requires return of PPE at separation, the employer may recover unreturned items, but cannot charge employees for ordinary wear-and-tear related to workplace use.

Employers must provide PPE to each employee as required by the standard, which includes ensuring the PPE remains suitable (usable, maintained, and replaced as needed) for protection. See 1915.9(a).

• Practical obligations include issuing properly fitting PPE, training employees on care, and repairing or replacing damaged or worn-out PPE so protection is continuous.
• If an employer fails to replace or maintain PPE for an employee, that individual failure can be cited as a separate violation under 1915.9(a). OSHA’s PPE payment interpretation also explains employers cannot charge employees for normal wear-and-tear replacements when the PPE is required by the standard.

Under 1915.9(b) the content and manner of training are determined by the specific shipyard standard that requires training; the employer must ensure each affected employee receives the training the standard specifies. See 1915.9(b).

• If a particular shipyard regulation prescribes subjects, frequency, or format (for example, hands-on, classroom, or written material), the employer must provide training that meets those requirements for every covered employee.
• Employers should document training consistent with the applicable standard to show each employee received the required instruction.

Yes. The phrase "each employee covered by the requirement" in 1915.9(a) includes temporary, part-time, and contract employees when the PPE requirement applies to their work; the employer must provide PPE to every covered individual. See 1915.9(a).

• If multiple employers share a worksite, each employer must ensure its own employees have required PPE; host employers and contractors should coordinate to make sure all affected workers are covered.
• Failure to provide PPE to any single covered worker may be treated as a separate violation.

Yes. 1915.9(b) requires that each affected employee be trained "in the manner required by the standard," which generally means employers must retrain employees when job tasks, equipment, or hazards change in ways that make previous training inadequate. See 1915.9(b).

• Many shipyard standards explicitly require retraining when duties or exposures change; absent specific text, employers should provide refresher or new training whenever an employee’s hazard exposure or responsibilities change.
• Document retraining to demonstrate compliance for each affected employee.

Yes. Under 1915.9(a) the duty is to provide PPE that effectively protects each required employee; issuing PPE that does not fit properly and therefore does not protect the employee can be treated as a failure to provide adequate PPE for that employee. See 1915.9(a).

• Employers must ensure PPE fits and is appropriate (for example, size and type) and must make adjustments or provide alternatives when fit problems arise.
• Fit testing requirements for respirators are governed by other standards; where respirator use is required, employers should follow applicable respirator rules and train each employee accordingly.

No. 1915.9(b) requires the employer to train each affected employee in the manner required by the particular standard, but it does not universally require outside certification; the standard that requires training may specify qualifications for trainers. See 1915.9(b).

• Some shipyard standards (or industry-specific rules) may require that training be provided by a qualified person or competent person; in those cases the trainer’s qualifications matter for compliance.
• OSHA’s definition and guidance on a competent person explain that a competent person must be capable of recognizing hazards and specifying protections; see OSHA’s competent person interpretation for additional context.

An employer’s failure to provide PPE to multiple covered employees may result in multiple citations because 1915.9(a) treats the duty to provide PPE as a separate compliance duty with respect to each employee. See 1915.9(a).

• OSHA enforcement treats each individual who was not provided required PPE as a separate instance of noncompliance.
• This per-employee approach also applies to training failures under 1915.9(b).

Generally no. When a standard requires the employer to provide PPE, the employer must supply it; reimbursements or post-hoc payments do not replace the employer’s duty to provide required PPE at no cost up front. See 1915.9(a) and OSHA’s PPE payment interpretation.

• OSHA has cautioned that reimbursement systems are not acceptable if they effectively make the employee pay for required PPE; any payment or deposit scheme must not circumvent the employer’s obligation to provide PPE without cost to the worker.
• Employers may use a deposit-for-return system where the employer retains ownership and returns money when PPE is returned, provided the system does not result in an involuntary cost to the employee.

Yes. 1915.9(b) requires the employer to train each affected employee "in the manner required by the standard," which includes ensuring training is understandable to the employee—this commonly means delivering training in a language and format the employee can understand. See 1915.9(b).

• Practical compliance requires employers to provide interpreters, translated materials, or alternative methods (e.g., demonstrations) so each covered employee actually understands the hazards and protections.
• If an inspector finds employees who were not effectively trained because of language barriers, each affected employee could be cited separately for lack of required training.

No. When a shipyard standard requires specific eye protection for hazards like welding, the employer must provide the appropriate protective equipment (e.g., welding helmets or shaded goggles) — ordinary sunglasses are not adequate for welding hazards. See 1915.9(a) and OSHA’s letter clarifying that "potentially injurious light radiation" in 1915.153 refers to intense radiation from welding and requires specialized protective devices: Shipyard eye and face protection interpretation.

• The 2019 interpretation explains that PPE for welding must shield against intense radiant energy (UV/IR) and ordinary sunglasses are not designed for that workplace hazard.
• The employer must supply and ensure use of the correct protective device for each affected employee performing welding or similar tasks.

1915.9(b) requires training of each affected employee in the manner required by the applicable standard, but 1915.9 itself does not prescribe a universal recordkeeping requirement; however, many shipyard standards do require documentation of training, and keeping records is the practical way to demonstrate each employee received required training. See 1915.9(b).

• Employers should follow the specific training-record requirements in the shipyard standard that triggered the training duty.
• In inspections, CSHOs commonly ask for proof (attendance rosters, sign-in sheets, training certificates) to verify per-employee compliance.

Yes. A competent person can recognize hazards and specify necessary protection under Part 1915 requirements, and an employer may rely on a qualified competent person to determine appropriate PPE; however, the ultimate responsibility for compliance rests with the employer. See 1915.9(a) and OSHA’s competent person interpretation.

• OSHA’s 2016 letter explains the competent person must be capable of recognizing hazards and specifying protections, and for certain subparts must meet additional requirements under 1915.7.
• Employers should ensure the competent person has the necessary qualifications and document the determinations made for each affected employee.

Yes. When a standard (including the shipyard beryllium standard) requires PPE because of beryllium hazards, the employer must provide that PPE to each covered employee; each failure to provide PPE can be a separate violation. See 1915.9(a) and OSHA’s Interim Enforcement Guidance for the 2020 Final Beryllium Standards, which applies to the shipyard beryllium standard (29 CFR 1915.1024).

• The beryllium guidance reiterates per-employee enforcement elements where PPE or other controls are required by the beryllium standard.
• Employers must also follow any specific PPE specifications or respiratory protection requirements contained in the beryllium standard.

Yes, if the particular shipyard standard requires or allows hands-on training, on-the-job demonstrations can satisfy the per-employee training requirement so long as the training covers the required topics and the employee understands them. See 1915.9(b).

• The employer must ensure each affected employee receives effective training in the manner the standard requires (lecture, hands-on, supervised practice, etc.).
• Keep documentation showing each employee completed the required hands-on elements to demonstrate compliance.

Not necessarily. 1915.9(a) requires providing PPE to each employee required to use it; sharing PPE may fail the duty if the arrangement does not ensure each employee has appropriate, safe, and sanitary PPE when needed. See 1915.9(a).

• Shared PPE that compromises fit, sanitation, or availability for an individual employee when needed could be considered a failure to provide proper PPE to that employee.
• Employers should provide PPE sized and fitted for each worker, or maintain cleaning and rotation procedures that ensure PPE remains protective for every user.

Yes. Under 1915.9(b) the employer has a separate duty to train each affected employee; if a supervisor’s incomplete training results in individual employees not receiving the training required by the standard, each affected employee’s lack of training may be treated as a separate violation. See 1915.9(b).

• The employer bears responsibility for ensuring training is complete and effective for every covered employee, regardless of whether training was delegated to a supervisor.
• Employers should monitor training quality and keep per-employee records showing required topics were covered.

The employer must provide PPE appropriate to the hazard; for welding and gas torch cutting the shipyard standard requires protection that shields against intense radiant energy (UV/IR) — general safety glasses are not sufficient. See 1915.9(a) and OSHA’s Shipyard eye and face protection interpretation, which explains heavy-duty welding lenses and helmets are required for those exposures.

• Employers must supply and ensure use of welding-appropriate PPE for each employee engaged in welding/cutting operations.
• Failure to provide the correct type of eye protection for each welder can be cited as a separate violation under 1915.9(a).

OSHA treats PPE and training duties as separate per-employee obligations under 1915.9(a) and 1915.9(b); a single systemic shortfall can lead to multiple per-employee citations—one for each affected employee. See 1915.9(a) and 1915.9(b).

• Inspectors often document how many employees were missing PPE or training and may assert a separate violation for each person.
• Employers should correct systemic problems quickly and document remediation and employee-specific training or PPE issuance to mitigate enforcement and show compliance.