On Induction, the company I work for issue a PPE kit bag with the following items 

Hard Hat, bump cap, gloves, safety glasses, face masks x 2, 1st aid kit, hi vis vest, ear plugs

Now I understand that they have to supply the PPE and replace anything if it is damaged or has been used and needs replenishing. 

If an employee leaves after a short period of time, say within 2-4 weeks would it be acceptable/reasonable to charge the employee for unused or un returned items? 

Read the regulations and realise the answer is no you cannot - even if they leave on day one they have still be an employee and cannot be charged for PPE.

Why are you issuing so much kit in the first place (individual first aid kits) and how do they simultaneoulsy wear a Hard Hat and Bump Cap?

Originally Posted by: Roundtuit

Read the regulations and realise the answer is no you cannot - even if they leave on day one they have still be an employee and cannot be charged for PPE.

Why are you issuing so much kit in the first place (individual first aid kits) and how do they simultaneoulsy wear a Hard Hat and Bump Cap?

"An employer cannot ask for money from an employee for PPE, whether it is returnable or not. This includes agency workers, if they are legally regarded as your employees. If employment has been terminated and the employee keeps the PPE without the employer’s permission, then, as long as it has been made clear in the contract of employment, the employer may be able to deduct the cost of the replacement from any wages owed."

from the HSE site Leaflet INDG174. If they don't return PPE and it was made clear in the induction/contract you CAN charge them for it.

If it helps, during our three month probation period we operate a policy of seeking a refund on safety boots if they are not returned. After the probabtion period we don't do this. It is made clear during the induction and in the contract they sign.

We don't seek compensation for the cheaper items, such as masks, gloves and ear defenders.

Normally I ask the new employees if they have their own boots for the probation period and purchase new boots for them after the three months. Obviously if they don't already own any boots, they can either opt for a spare pair from stock, or I will purchase them a pair, with the afore mentioned clause.

I don't think we ever have actually claimed back against someone though, and I am not sure we would unless the person left under very bad terms.

Given the speed most HR functions work an employee may have left without seeing, or signing, such a contractual obligation.

Two to four weeks would not typically be considered an acceptance period under employment law e.g. if you wanted to change a policy.

You would need to be careful that a single deduction from final pay does not breach other legislation such as National Minimum Wage (written after the HSE guidance) and that the terms of such deduction would be considered "fair" under employment law.

Along with hygiene considerations for any returned kit to be reused probably why very few employers bother.

I agree with the hygiene issue, it would only be for un used PPE

With regards to HR, it would be in the contract that they sign before starting or on their induction day, surely we arent responsible for them not reaidng fully?

If your HR are organised and have the contract ready no problem. Too often I have people telling me after 12 - 24 months they still have not been issued an actual contract despite having returned an offer letter before they started (different documents).

Does Kit-Bag = mobile worker  or is it instead of a locker? Either way termination must involve some form of communication so if they are at a single site ask for the PPE there and then, if they are mobile give them x weeks to return it to... or their wage will be docked

In this case HR are organised which helps.

These are for mobile workers, i do agree with the giving a certain amount of time to return the PPE if they leave. In the case of them being terminated would that have different terms or would it be subject to the contract and what they sign?

Termination of employemnt is a clause within a contract - your HR department should have or be capable of writing this covering as a sub-paragraph company issued equipment, under what circumstances it must be returned, how it should be returned (in person, by post to..., handed to area supervisor), when it should be returned and the consequence of not doing so.

If this activity will actually be cost effective (remembering all the additional administration entailed - used/unused/cleaning/replacement/payroll processing etc.) what is going wrong so many leave?

And again beware the impact against National Minimum Wage of any deduction.

I'm not suggesting that they would start a job for a few weeks to gain a pair of boots, we also don't seek to terminate employment after only a few weeks. In some instances that may be the solution depending on the employee. 

We dont clean boots and dont have any plans to do so and the focus of the discussion isn't solely aimed at the boots, it was more a general discussion, if an employee does start and decides to leave within a short period of time, can we charge for PPE that hasnt been returned?