Appropriate footwear must be worn within the workplace where specific footwear is designated. This means that there must be some protection provided to the person from slips, trips, and falls, plus protection from cuts and infections.

Bare feet and thongs are inappropriate in some areas and therefore not permissible. Covered shoes and strapped on sandals may be permitted, subject to their providing a degree of protection.

The appropriateness of an individual's footwear is the discretion of the employee responsible for the office work area.

ASSESS THE RISK

Signs that shoes are placing wearers at risk of slips, trips and falls include shoes with:

  • soles that are very smooth, but tasks and environment require moving across smooth, polished floors that may have contaminants
  • high heels with small contact areas when tasks require walking over uneven ground, sloped surfaces, handling heavy loads, or rapid movements on contaminated floors
  • loose fittings such as sandals or rubber thongs that are not well fastened around the foot
  • worn-out treads or soles that no longer provide grip.

OFFICE HAZARDS

Employers also need to be mindful of other potential risks in the workplace.

Hazards in offices might not be as obvious as those in high-risk work environments, such as building sites and mines, but there is a range of factors with health and safety implications for office workers.  

These include ergonomic issues (e.g. workstation set-up), sedentary and manual tasks, electrical and fire hazards, slip, trip and fall hazards, lighting, temperature, air quality and risks associated with computer use (e.g. eye strain, poor posture, repetitive strain injury).