1
Set the scene
Start with context
Fill the frame
2–3 ft for close-ups; keep ladders, cords and workers fully in view.
PPE
Unprotected Hands Are the Most Injured Part of the Body
Match the glove to the hazard before the work starts
Hands are involved in a huge share of workplace injuries because they are in constant contact with tools, materials, and machinery. Missing gloves, or the wrong gloves for the task, leave workers exposed to lacerations, chemical burns, punctures, and amputations. OSHA Scan analyzes job-site photos to flag workers handling hazards with bare hands or unsuitable gloves before an injury happens.
Free · No account needed to scan · Results in seconds
AI analysis preview
1
Hazard detectedSample report
1CriticalMissing Gloves / Hand Protection
May relate to 29 CFR 1926.95
1M+
US workers treated for hand injuries a year
70%
Hand-injured workers were not wearing gloves
$25K
Average cost of a serious hand injury
~15s
Typical time to get scan results
What this scenario looks like
A missing hand protection hazard is any task where a worker's hands face cuts, punctures, burns, chemicals, or crush forces without gloves, or with gloves that do not match the hazard. It shows up as bare hands gripping sheet metal or glass, cloth gloves handling solvents, or thin general-purpose gloves used for tasks that demand cut- or chemical-resistant protection.
In practice, these hazards appear when gloves are removed for 'dexterity' on a quick cut, when the only gloves available are the wrong type for the chemical or blade being used, or when worn-out gloves with holes stay in service. The mismatch is common: a glove rated for abrasion offers little defense against a utility knife, and a leather glove offers no barrier to a caustic chemical.
The danger is that hand injuries happen in a fraction of a second and are easy to underestimate. A blade slip, a hot surface, or a pinch point gives no warning, and a deep laceration or amputation can end a career, which is why confirming the right gloves for each task from a photo matters before hands go to work.
A labelled example scan for this scenario
Here is what an OSHA Scan report looks like for missing gloves / hand protection. It is an illustrative example built from this scenario's hazards — clearly marked, not live scan data.
Example report
Illustrative — not live scan dataCompliance score
39
Lower means more potential hazards found
3 potential hazards found
1 Critical1 High1 Medium
Missing Gloves / Hand Protection
CriticalPossibly related to Criteria for personal protective equipment (29 CFR 1926.95)
Observed condition: A missing hand protection hazard is any task where a worker's hands face cuts, punctures, burns, chemicals, or crush forces without gloves, or with gloves that do not match the ha…
Corrective action: Use tools and jigs that keep hands away from blades, pinch points, and hot surfaces
High confidence
Missing Gloves / Hand Protection: Hand protection
HighPossibly related to Hand protection (29 CFR 1910.138)
Observed condition: Requires employers to select and require hand protection based on an assessment of the hazards, including cuts, burns, chemicals, punctures, and harmful temperatures.
Corrective action: Deburr, grind, or cap sharp edges on stock and finished parts
Medium confidenceNot fully clear from the photo — verify on site.
Missing Gloves / Hand Protection: General requirements for personal protective equipment
MediumPossibly related to General requirements for personal protective equipment (29 CFR 1910.132)
Observed condition: Requires a hazard assessment to determine needed PPE, employer provision of that PPE, and training so employees use it correctly.
Corrective action: Provide safer cutting tools with guarded or retracting blades
High confidence
AI-generated analysisThese findings are potential hazards flagged by AI from a single photo. They are a starting point for your own review — not an official OSHA determination. Verify conditions on site with a qualified person before acting.
Why this scenario matters
Immediate consequences
Unprotected hands suffer deep lacerations, chemical and thermal burns, punctures, and amputations. Many hand injuries cause permanent loss of function, grip, or fingers.
Legal & financial impact
PPE requirements under 29 CFR 1926.95 are widely enforced, and employers must provide and require suitable hand protection. A serious violation exceeds $16,000 and willful or repeat findings can surpass $165,000.
Operational impact
A serious hand injury pulls a skilled worker off the job, triggers a recordable or investigation, and drives up workers' compensation costs and insurance premiums for years.
Industry-specific concerns
Metal fabrication, glazing, demolition, plumbing, and chemical-handling trades all expose hands to sharp, hot, and corrosive hazards that demand task-specific glove selection.
How OSHA Scan detects this hazard
OSHA Scan uses an AI vision model to flag missing or mismatched hand protection. Upload a photo of the work and it identifies workers handling sharp, hot, or chemical hazards, checks whether gloves are present and appropriate to the task, flags bare hands or worn-out gloves, and returns a severity rating with the OSHA standard it may relate to in seconds.
Analyze your first photo freeScanning
1
Hazard found
Try it free
Scan a photo for missing gloves / hand protection now
Upload a real job-site photo and OSHA Scan detects visible hazards in seconds — no account needed to run your first scan.
- Bare hands and wrong-rated gloves flagged near cut, chemical, and hot hazards
- The hand-protection standard each mismatched-glove finding may relate to
- A dated, scored glove-selection review you can export to PDF or Excel
Live OSHA hazard analysis
Free instant AI scanPhoto scan — no account neededVideo walkthrough scan — free account
1Upload photo
2AI analysis
3See report
Use the real site or facility name. If you save the scan after signup, it becomes the report name.
Three angles, one deeper scan
Only the wide shot is required — every extra angle gives the AI more places to look.
Required: Set the scene — one wide shot lets the AI sweep the whole area at once
Stand at the entry point and capture corner to corner: floors, ladders, scaffolds, and everyone at work
or choose from your library
Drop a job-site photo or walkthrough video
Click to upload, drag & drop, or snap a photo on site. Photos scan free in about 15 seconds — no signup, no card. Video walkthroughs (up to 3 min) run on a free account.
Results in ~15sReferences relevant OSHA standardsPrivate - deleted in 48h unless you save it
Accuracy boosters
Small habits, sharper scans
2
Capture clearly
Make the frame usable
Light it right
Keep the sun or lights behind you — glare and shadows hide hazards.
Tap to focus
Tap the hazard on screen and hold still one second — blur can't be flagged.
3
Choose the useful view
Give the AI room to understand
Go landscape
Turn your phone sideways — a wider frame catches more of the scene.
No job-site photo handy?
or scan with video
Only upload photos you have permission to use, and avoid images showing personal, customer, or confidential information. Demo photos and results are held privately for up to 48 hours so you can save them to a free account; unclaimed photos are deleted automatically. Results are an AI-assisted preliminary review, not an official OSHA determination.
New: Video walkthrough scans
Record up to 3 minutes of your site — the AI extracts frames and flags every hazard with exact timestamps. Free account required.
Get the best results
Wide shot first
Stand at the entrance and photograph the entire work area so AI sees the full context
Hazard areas
Photograph elevated surfaces, equipment, electrical panels, and anywhere workers are active
Close-ups last
Move in close on anything damaged, missing, or that looks risky — the AI catches more detail
Real incident case study
Bare hands on a fresh metal cut
The situation
A fabricator was trimming galvanized sheet metal and set his cut-resistant gloves aside because they felt bulky for positioning small pieces. He continued deburring and stacking the freshly cut panels with bare hands to save time.
What went wrong
A sharp burr on a panel edge sliced deep across his palm as he lifted it, severing tendons. Because he had no cut protection, the wound required surgery and months of therapy, and he lost significant grip strength permanently.
How OSHA Scan would have prevented it
A photo of the workstation run through OSHA Scan would have flagged the bare hands handling cut sheet metal, cited 29 CFR 1926.95, and prompted the supervisor to require task-appropriate cut-resistant gloves before any deburring or stacking continued.
Lessons learned
Removing gloves for dexterity is a common and costly shortcut. The right cut-resistant gloves preserve enough dexterity for the task, and hand protection must match the specific hazard, not be skipped for convenience.
Prevention best practices
Layered controls, from most to least effective.
Engineering controls
Reduce hand exposure to hazards at the source before relying on gloves.
- Use tools and jigs that keep hands away from blades, pinch points, and hot surfaces
- Deburr, grind, or cap sharp edges on stock and finished parts
- Provide safer cutting tools with guarded or retracting blades
- Substitute less hazardous chemicals to reduce corrosive exposure
Administrative controls
Match gloves to each task and enforce their use through a hazard assessment.
- Conduct a hand-hazard assessment and document glove selection per task
- Stock a range of gloves: cut-, chemical-, heat-, and puncture-resistant
- Post glove-selection guidance at material and chemical stations
- Inspect gloves before use and replace worn or contaminated pairs
- Train workers on when and why gloves must never be removed
Personal protective equipment
Provide correctly rated gloves for the specific hand hazards present.
- Cut-resistant gloves of the appropriate ANSI cut level for sharp work
- Chemical-resistant gloves matched to the specific substances handled
- Heat- or thermal-resistant gloves for hot surfaces and welding
- Puncture- and impact-resistant gloves for demolition and rough handling
- Inspect all gloves before each use and remove torn or degraded pairs
OSHA compliance & citations
The federal standards this hazard may relate to.
29 CFR 1926.95
Criteria for personal protective equipment
Requires employers to provide and ensure the use of appropriate personal protective equipment, including hand protection, wherever hazards to the hands are present.
Up to $16,550 per serious violation; $165,514 for willful or repeat
29 CFR 1910.138
Hand protection
Requires employers to select and require hand protection based on an assessment of the hazards, including cuts, burns, chemicals, punctures, and harmful temperatures.
Up to $16,550 per serious violation
29 CFR 1910.132
General requirements for personal protective equipment
Requires a hazard assessment to determine needed PPE, employer provision of that PPE, and training so employees use it correctly.
Up to $16,550 per serious violation
Incident response protocol
If an incident occurs, act fast and in order.
Immediate actions (first 5 minutes)
- 1Call 911 for severe lacerations, amputations, or chemical burns
- 2Control bleeding with direct pressure and elevate the hand if trained
- 3Flush chemical exposure at an eyewash or safety shower per the SDS
- 4Recover and preserve any amputated part on ice, not in direct contact
- 5Assign someone to direct emergency responders to the exact location
Emergency response (5-30 minutes)
- 1Cooperate fully with arriving emergency responders
- 2Provide the SDS for any chemical involved in the injury
- 3Account for all workers and stop the task that caused the injury
- 4Secure the tool, material, or chemical involved to prevent recurrence
- 5Document the workstation and hazard with photos once care is underway
Post-incident
- 1Notify OSHA within 24 hours for an amputation or in-patient hospitalization
- 2Launch an incident investigation within 24 hours
- 3Preserve the tools, materials, and gloves involved and all documentation
- 4Interview the worker and witnesses while details are fresh
- 5Revise the hand-hazard assessment and glove selection and retrain the crew
Team training module
Workers will understand how hand injuries occur, recognize which hazards require gloves, and select, inspect, and correctly use the right hand protection for each task.
Train workers before assigning tasks with hand hazards, refresh annually, and reinforce with toolbox talks using real photos of correct and incorrect glove selection.
Training topics
- Common hand injuries and their long-term impact
- Recognizing cut, puncture, chemical, thermal, and impact hazards
- Matching glove type and ANSI cut level to the task
- Chemical glove selection and breakthrough times
- Why gloves must not be removed for dexterity near hazards
- Inspecting gloves for damage and contamination
- Proper donning, doffing, and disposal of contaminated gloves
- Engineering controls that reduce hand exposure
- First aid for cuts, burns, and amputations
- OSHA hand-protection requirements and penalties
Compliance checklist
Run these checks to stay ahead of citations.
Daily pre-work inspection
- Hand hazards identified for every task of the day
- Correct glove type available for each task's hazard
- Cut-resistant gloves at the correct ANSI level on hand
- Chemical gloves matched to the substances being used
- Gloves inspected for holes, tears, and degradation
- Damaged or contaminated gloves removed from service
- Workers briefed on when gloves must stay on
- Engineering controls in place to reduce hand exposure
Unlock the full Missing Gloves / Hand Protection checklist
10 more checklist points are waiting. Register with your email to reveal every item and download the complete OSHA compliance checklist as a printable PDF. Free, and it only takes a few seconds.
Already have an account? Sign in
Frequently asked questions
When are gloves required on a job site?
Gloves are required whenever a hazard assessment shows the hands are exposed to cuts, punctures, chemicals, harmful temperatures, or abrasion. Under 29 CFR 1926.95, the employer must provide and require suitable hand protection for those tasks.
Do all gloves protect against all hazards?
No. Gloves are hazard-specific: a cut-resistant glove offers little chemical protection, and a leather glove will not stop a caustic burn. The glove must be selected to match the specific hazard of the task, based on a documented assessment.
What is an ANSI cut level and why does it matter?
The ANSI cut level rates a glove's resistance to being cut, from A1 (low) to A9 (highest). Matching the cut level to the sharpness and force of the task ensures the glove actually protects the hand instead of giving a false sense of security.
Can workers remove gloves for tasks that need dexterity?
Removing gloves for dexterity is a leading cause of hand injuries. Modern task-specific gloves preserve enough dexterity for most work, so the correct thin, high-dexterity glove should be provided rather than allowing bare-handed work near hazards.
Who is responsible for providing hand protection?
The employer must provide appropriate hand protection at no cost to the worker and ensure it is used. Employers must also train workers on glove selection, use, and inspection under the PPE standards.
How often should gloves be inspected or replaced?
Inspect gloves before each use for holes, tears, thin spots, or chemical degradation, and replace them as soon as they are damaged or contaminated. Chemical gloves have limited breakthrough times and must be changed on schedule.
What are the OSHA penalties for missing hand protection?
A serious violation of the PPE standards can exceed $16,000, and willful or repeat violations can surpass $165,000 per instance. Amputations and serious hand injuries can also raise workers' compensation costs sharply.
How accurate is OSHA Scan at detecting missing hand protection?
OSHA Scan flags missing or mismatched hand protection. It identifies bare hands near hazards and unsuitable gloves and returns the location and the OSHA citation it may relate to.
Protect every hand on your crew
Analyze a photo
Upload a photo of your crew at work to get instant feedback on missing or mismatched hand protection in your exact environment.
Get startedGet the hand-PPE checklist
Put our expert glove-selection checklist to work on your next job to stay ahead of citations and injuries.
Get startedTalk to our team
See how OSHA Scan fits your PPE program and get recommendations for matching gloves to your specific hazards.
Get startedJoin safety-first contractors
See how other crews use OSHA Scan to prevent disabling hand injuries before they happen.
Get startedPlatform Capabilities
One practical command center for safer work
Review findings, organize chemical records, and open relevant official resources for your saved locations and work context.
Human-in-the-loop review
You make the final call. Review, edit, or dismiss any AI-flagged hazard before finalizing your inspection report.
SDS modernization drafts
Scan chemical labels or upload legacy MSDS sheets to create structured drafts that support your team's search for and review of current official manufacturer Safety Data Sheets.
Contextual official resources
Open official OSHA and State Plan guidance, required posters, emergency contacts, and relevant publications for saved locations and work requirements.
What the AI can and can't detect
OSHA Scan reads a single photo. That makes it fast and easy for anyone on site — but it also means it has real limits. Here's an honest look at both.
What it can catch from a photo
- Missing or incorrect PPE that is visible in the frame
- Unprotected edges, open holes, and visible fall hazards
- Housekeeping, trip, and blocked walkway or exit hazards
- Visible electrical, struck-by, and equipment-guarding hazards
What a photo can't tell it
- Hazards hidden from view or anything outside the photo
- Exact heights, distances, weights, or measurements
- Training records, procedures, or how equipment is actually used
- Full legal compliance or an official OSHA pass/fail determination
OSHA Scan gives an AI-assisted preliminary review from a photo. It does not replace an on-site inspection by a qualified safety professional, and a compliance score is not an official OSHA determination.
Reviewed by OSHA Scan Editorial
Last updated August 29, 2026
This content is produced by the OSHA Scan Editorial team and reviewed with AI assistance. It is general safety information, not legal or compliance advice. OSHA Scan is an independent tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or certified by OSHA or the U.S. Department of Labor.
OSHA Scan
Ready to catch hazards before they become incidents?
Start with 5 included AI site scans plus a one-time 10-scan signup bonus — no credit card. Build JHA-ready reports and catch changing conditions sooner.
Start your free trial