Reference

Hand injuries are among the most common and preventable workplace incidents, yet most happen because the glove never matched the hazard. This guide walks through a hazard-based process for cut, impact, chemical, heat, and abrasion risks, decodes the rating systems, and covers coatings, dexterity, and sizing so gloves get worn.

Until recently no U.S. standard rated the back-of-hand armor on impact gloves. This guide explains ANSI/ISEA 138, how impact-resistant gloves are tested, what Levels 1, 2, and 3 mean in transmitted force, why impact is separate from cut resistance, and how to choose the right level by job, from light assembly to oil and gas.

The EN 388 shield-and-numbers mark on a work glove encodes its mechanical protection, but only if you can read it. This guide decodes every position of the EN 388:2016 rating, abrasion, cut, tear, puncture, the ISO 13997 cut letter, and impact, explains why the cut number changed, and maps EN 388 to the ANSI/ISEA 105 scale.

A work glove that is too loose snags in machinery and a glove that is too tight causes hand fatigue and tear-through. This guide gives the full glove size chart, shows how to measure your hand circumference and length, converts numeric sizes 6-11 to XS-XXL, and works a real sizing example across nitrile, cut-resistant, and chemical gloves.