Colorado Enacts Law on PPE Wage Deductions and Meatpacking Restroom Access

Colorado has enacted a law that prohibits employers in the state from deducting from workers’ wages the costs of certain personal protective equipment. S.B. 26-160 was signed by Gov. Jared Polis (D) on June 3.

PPE Cost Deduction Rules

The law bars wage deductions for specified protective items. Exceptions include nonspecialty safety-toe protective footwear, including steel-toe shoes and boots, or nonspecialty prescription safety eyewear when the employer permits such footwear or eyewear to be worn off the jobsite. Additional exceptions cover built-in metatarsal protection provided at an employee’s request, logging boots, everyday clothing such as long-sleeved shirts, long pants, street shoes and normal work boots, and ordinary clothing, skin creams or other items used solely for protection from weather, such as winter coats, jackets, gloves, parkas, rubber boots, hats, raincoats, ordinary sunglasses and sunscreen.

Restroom Access Mandate

The law requires certain slaughterhouses and other meatpacking employers to provide reasonable access to restrooms. This provision applies to employers with 500 or more workers.

Enforcement and Penalties

Under the law, the state may fine out-of-compliance employers up to $200 per employee per week. According to Safety+Health Magazine, the measure addresses both PPE cost allocation and facility access in covered workplaces. The statute takes effect following the June 3 signing.

According to Safety+Health Magazine, S.B. 26-160 contains the listed exceptions for footwear, eyewear and clothing items. The restroom requirements target large meatpacking operations only.