FloorSlip
Tips on buying Non-Slip / Anti-slip Shoes
Points to consider when selecting Non-Slip / Anti-Slip shoes.
In the USA, NIOSH (Equivalent to the UK HSE) conducted trials in USA schools over a 4-year period on 17,000 food service workers.
It was found there were 67% fewerClaims for Slip Injuries for workers provided with slip-resistant shoes, compared to NO reduction in claims for slip injuries where shoes were not provided.
What to look for when buying non-slip / anti-slip shoes
Scientific Studies in Shoes and Boots concluded those with a tread pattern on sole and heel and of a particular rubber compound are far less likely to slip than smooth soles and heels.
But how do you select what is the best patterns of non-slip safety footwear as there are so many choices and so many manufacturers are declaring thier footwear 'supposedly' as non-slip or anti-slip?
For example, the shoes at (a), (b) and (c) in the image below all have tread patterns.
- Those at (a) and (b) are ‘Off the shelf – no name' anti-slip shoes and 'might' provide reasonable anti-slip properties.
- But the anti-slip soles at (c} have a specially developed profile of a mix of smooth and textured surfaces and proven in extensive laboratory trials to have a far better ‘Dynamic Coefficient of Friction* (The measure of the resistance to slip) and are 'Star Rated'.
* A Dynamic Coefficient of Friction is a value which is determined by Floor Pendulum Test where the action of a heel sliding across a floor whilst walking is effectively imitated
The GRIP and STAR Rating for Anti-Slip Shoes
Ideally you want to provide to your employees a shoe or boot complying and tested to European standards EN ISO 20344 and BS EN ISO 13287:2007. Using these standards, the UK HSE / HSL (Health and Safety Executive / Laboratories) in conjunction with manufacturers have arrived at GRIP RATINGS shown as a series of ‘STARS’ from 5, the Highest level of anti-slip; to 1, the Lowest level of anti-slip.
Word of Warning, to avoid Slip Injury Claims, do not let employees select their own shoes unless they are ‘STAR RATED’ (as discussed below) and also, setup a schedule of checking how worn the soles and heels are.
Picking the Correct Star Rating for you / your employees
As a European or UK employer, you are aiming at a ‘STAR RATING’ for shoes and footwear to be decided based around a Floor Safety Risk Assessment. The effectiveness of the footwear should be monitored as part of the risk assessment process.
| Footwear STAR Ratings | Environment |
| One-Star or Two-Star footwear | Low hazard environment; but if slips occur when employees are wearing Two Star footwear then consider upgrading to footwear with a higher rating. |
| Three-Star or Four-Star footwear | Slips known to occur. This anti-slip footwear should reduce slipping in the large number of workplaces. However, Where employees are still getting slips when 3 and 4 start footwear has been worn, switch to 5 Star |
| Five Star footwear | The best non-slip footwear available |
Suppliers of 4 and 5 Star Rated Anti-Slip Shoes
NOTE - The UK HSL (hsl.gov.uk) provide links to companies selling GRIP/STAR Rated shoes. Unfortunately, some of the data on the HSE/HSL website is out of date so we have filtered down the data to those links that work.
(Links last checked Jan 2023).
Anvil Traction (Wellingborough, UK) https://www.anviltraction.com/
Blackrock (Manchester, UK) https://www.blackrockworkwear.com/
Maspica SpA (Italy) http://www.sixton.it/
Safer Safety Limited (Chesterfield, UK) http://safer-safety.co.uk/
Shoes for Crews (Online Orders) https://www.sfceurope.com/uk/
Sievi (Wales and Finland) https://www.sievi.com/uk/products/safety-shoes
WearerTech Ltd (Bristol) https://wearertech.com/non-slip