Waving Goodbye to HSE Warnings

Some salon owners are rejecting government warnings urging hairdressers to wear gloves.

Despite the Health and Safety Executive’s “Bad Hand Day” campaign, which encourages hairdressers to wear non-latex gloves at work, some salon owners have reservations about using the gloves.

The glove trials were carried out in 750 hair salons across 38 local authorities. They were organised on the back of HSE's well-known 'Bad Hand Day' campaign and in partnership with Local Authorities and Habia. After the trial, 80 per cent of participants said the gloves were comfortable to wear and 74 per cent of them said that they could handle clients' hair without snagging, dispelling the common myth that hairdressers are reluctant to use gloves.

According to regional paper, The Bolton News, local hairdresser Emma Guy, who co-owns the Euphoria salons in Deansgate and Harwood, is one of the small percentage of salon owners unconvinced about the advice.

She said: “Gloves are uncomfortable to wear and it often gets hot in a salon, which can make wearing them even worse. It’s also hard to do things like pick up foil or use small combs with gloves.

“When you’re shampooing, you can’t feel the temperature of the water, which is an important issue because customer care is very important in this business.

“I have worked in hairdressing for 10 years and I’ve never had any problems with my hands.”

The “Bad Hand Day” campaign has been strongly supported by the industry.  Successful celebrity hairdresser, Mark Hill is backing the campaign. He said:"Buying and wearing non-latex gloves to protect our hands from skin damage makes good business sense. As well as the unhappiness and distress it can create for the hairdresser suffering from a skin condition like dermatitis, the financial costs to salons can be significant. In this economic climate, I imagine more salons will explore ways of reducing financial risk to their business and protecting staff from skin damage."

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