George Bunker LLC occasionally requires workers to perform tasks in environments where respiratory protection is required. In such cases, our employees must follow the written Respiratory Protection procedure and adhere to the Respiratory Protection training program. When an employe chooses to wear an air filtering face mask or respirator at times when there are no measurable contaminants in the air, it is their right to do so. In such cases, employees can voluntarily wear respirators without the requirement of fit testing.

Respirators are an effective method of protection against designated hazards when properly selected and worn. However, if a respirator is used improperly or not kept clean and maintained as recommended by the manufacturer, the respirator itself can become a hazard to the user. 

If you provide and utilize your own respirator on a voluntary basis, you are responsible for the care and maintenance of that respirator. You should also take whatever precautions that are recommended by the manufacturer.

In addition, you must meet the following requirements if utilizing a voluntary respirator on company property:  

Read and heed all instructions provided by the manufacturer on use, maintenance, cleaning and care, and warnings regarding the respirators’ limitations. 
Do not wear your respirators into an atmosphere containing contaminants for which the respirator is not designed to protect against.
Keep track of your respirator so that you do not mistakenly use someone else’s respirator or allow your respirator to be used by somebody else.

The above information is being provided as an educational resource for voluntary respirator users.

It is required by regulation that George Bunker provide voluntary respirator users with Appendix D of the Respiratory Protection Standard: https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.134AppD