Worker Health and Safety in the Modern Body Shop

Have you ever considered what it takes to repair a car after an accident? It takes a lot. There’s cutting, grinding, sanding, and painting – all done by skilled workers willing to work in a hazardous environment in order to make customers happy.

Needless to say there are a lot of inherent dangers in the modern body shop. As such, management and workers alike have to constantly be on their toes. Worker health and safety is top priority, and it is maintained through a combination of common sense and rules administered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Protective Clothing and Headgear

Equipment-related injuries are always a risk in an active body shop. Every day workers are operating lifts, compressors, sprayers, winches, and an endless number of hand tools for cutting metal and shaping repairs.

The best way to protect workers against equipment-related injuries is to require the use of protective clothing and headgear. Body shop workers wear heavy gloves and shoes on the job; they wear protective headgear when necessary; they dress in heavy-duty pants and shirts. Shorts, tank tops, and flip-flops are obviously not allowed.

Ventilated Spray Booths

Due to a plethora of harmful chemicals, any body shop operations involving fillers, solvents, paints, and primers takes place in a ventilated spray booth. Workers use protective gear and, when applicable, special respirators. They are protected against any exposure to volatile chemicals and organic compounds that could harm them.

Protective clothing and ventilated work spaces make up most of the measures taken by auto body shops to protect worker health and safety. Other actions include requiring ear protection and maintaining a clear and clean workspace to prevent slips and falls.

In short, responsible body shops do everything they can to keep their workers safe.