Hand Protection: Changes You Need to Know in the Updated ANSI/ISEA 105 Standard

By Cam Mackey

Most of us only get two hands. And it’s really hard to go through life without them. Which is why I’m continually surprised by this fact from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA): 70% of workers don’t wear hand protection on the job. And of those who do, 30% don’t wear the right kind of glove for the task.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recorded 238,900 total workplace hand injuries for 2021-2022 (the latest data set). OSHA says 71% of hand and arm injuries could have been prevented with personal protective equipment (PPE), specifically safety gloves. That means that 170,000 injuries could have been prevented simply by wearing the right type of glove

At the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA), our member companies and staff are acutely aware of the importance of hand protection — and we want every employer and worker to understand just how necessary it is.

Late last year, we announced the release of an updated standard for hand protection products: ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 American National Standard for Hand Protection Classification. This is the sixth edition of our voluntary industry consensus standard on hand and arm protection, a classification that was first published in 1999.

Why is this new standard so important? Because it’s vital for both employers and workers to select the right gloves for safety and performance. That can admittedly be a time-consuming and sometimes confusing process. So, the standard helps them make the right glove choices more easily.

For those who believe “a glove is a glove is a glove” — that’s simply not the case. Gloves are purpose-built for a variety of specific environments, purposes and tasks. Hand protection can consist of protective gloves, arm coverings or elbow-length gloves, or finger guards. Protective gloves can be fabric or coated fabric; leather, canvas, or metal mesh; include chemical-resistant material; or insulated rubber.

While OSHA’s standard for hand protection, 29 CFR 1910.138, specifies the selection criteria to be used when providing hand protection and ensures that employers provide their workers with PPE that is relevant to their work, manufacturers’ labeling was not always clear. Gloves might look similar but actually have important differences that are not obvious.

ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 strives to correct that problem. The updated standard specifies appropriate test methods and provides pass/fail criteria to allow users to interpret test results and determine which hand protection products meet their needs.

However, it made no major changes to those test methods or levels of protection from the prior standard. Again: The test results being used to indicate protection levels are not changing. Rather, what’s changing is how they are shown.

Clear Glove Labeling

By changing the labeling, ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 enhances clarity and uniformity in how glove manufacturers display levels of protection.

The updated standard specifies the use of a new pictogram label in the form of a pentagon badge, with the glove’s abrasion, cut, and puncture ratings displayed inside. The standard specifies the positioning of the label’s elements within the pentagon:

• The Cut rating symbol is in the top center
• The Abrasion rating symbol is on the left
• The Puncture rating symbol is on the right
• An ‘X’ can be applied in place of a rating to indicate the classification was not tested or is not applicable

As Dr. Andrew Funk, chair of the ISEA Hand Protection Product Group and senior laboratory manager at Wells Lamont Industrial, explains: “In the past, manufacturers used their own individual systems of shields and graphics to convey protection levels. The new pentagon badge system introduced in ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 provides uniformity and predictability for the entire industrial hand-protection ecosystem.”

Every glove conforming to ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 should show the new pentagon label containing the protection level, says Funk. The improved labeling is meant to help buyers and end users instantly recognize whether a particular glove is suitable for the task.

ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 also includes specific language for demonstrating conformity to the claimed classifications for the performance properties covered, referencing ANSI/ISEA 125-2021, American National Standard for Conformity Assessment of Safety and Personal Protective Equipment, which is available as a free download.

Educational Resources Available

To help employers and workers understand ANSI/ISEA 105-2024 and how it affects hand protection, ISEA developed a very robust online guide, including fact sheets, toolbox talks, posters, infographics and other resources about hand protection in the workplace.

We also held a webinar entitled “Protecting Hands, Elevating Safety: Unpacking ANSI/ISEA 105-2024.” All resources are available at to cost and can be found at safetyequipment.org/gloves

Cam Mackey is president & CEO of the International Safety Equipment Association.