Can I do Movember if I use RPE at work?
Movember is nearly upon us! Starting on the 1st of November, Mo Bros around the world commit to growing a moustache in the month of Movember to raise awareness and funds for men’s health charities.
Movember is a fun way to support important men’s health campaigns like prostate and testicular cancers, mental health and suicide prevention, but if you wear respiratory protective equipment (RPE) for work, you’ll know that facial hair can be a problem for Movember.
So what are your options for Movember if you need to wear a tight-fitting respirator for your job? As face fit testing specialists, we’re going to tell you exactly how to safely do Movember, even if you wear RPE!
how to do Movember if you use RPE
If you want to join the Mo Bros we’re here to help!
Think about safety first and make sure that joining in with Movember doesn’t interfere with properly fitting equipment, because RPE can’t protect you if it leaks.
Facial hair, even stubble, along a respirator’s sealing area can cause a bad seal with compromised effectiveness against harmful vapours, gases and particles. For this reason facial hair is something our testers always check for during face fit testing.
The rules for facial hair and RPE
The regs state that you are required to be clean shaven to wear RPE, but the HSE definition for being clean shaven is that employees should shave within 8 hours of starting their work shift, plus, the important bit, that no facial hair should cross the face seal area.
HSE regs for RPE state that facepieces need to fit tight to the wearer’s face to be effective:
“The performance of tight-fitting facepieces depends on achieving a good contact between the wearer’s skin and the face seal of the facepiece. A poor fit will significantly reduce the protection the RPE can provide you. Any reduction in protection can put your life in danger or may lead to immediate or long-term ill health.”
Health & Safety Executive
This means you can safely grow a moustache, as long as the rest of your face is clean shaven, and the moustache doesn’t compromise the face seal.
Need inspiration?
Growing a moustache that is face fit friendly is challenging but not impossible! Take inspiration from our face fit testers’ most ingenious candidate to date. Sporting an elaborately-groomed moustache, for his face fit test he tied the ends in a bow to keep them clear of the face seal area – and passed the test.
As long as your Movember moustache doesn’t cross the respirator seal and allows for a clean seal on the skin you can safely grow a moustache for Movember.
Get involved with Movember!
Join Movember by signing up to grow a moustache for 30 days and getting friends, family and colleagues to donate to Movember charities.
Men and women can also get involved by committing to walk or run 60km over the month. You can also host an event – bringing together friends to change the face of men’s health. Register to Grow, Move or Host at movember.com!
