The Essential High-Visibility PPE Checklist for Blue-Collar Workers in 2025

Personal protective equipment, or PPE, is a large category of items that help individuals in their daily work activities, especially blue-collar workers. With jobs involving a lot of physical labor and hands-on work duties, it makes sense that these individuals would need special equipment to complete their jobs. Although the exact type of PPE will depend on the individual’s job, there are some common PPE items that should be on the worker’s checklist to make their daily duties safe and convenient. For example, high-visibility PPE is one category of personal protective equipment that is often used with these types of occupations. Here are reasons to ensure your high-visibility PPE checklist is up-to-date and some necessary items to include on the list.
Why Do You Need High-Visibility PPE?
As opposed to an office setting where high-visibility PPE may not be necessary, in manual labor or skilled trade positions where physical labor is a daily part of the job, these clothing, footwear, and accessory items are essential. Some types of occupations or positions where the individuals may need high-visibility personal protective equipment include construction jobs, manufacturing roles, first responders, waste management professionals, and agriculture roles. Depending on your job role, this PPE is likely necessary for keeping you safe from injuries during your workday, providing you with comfortable and appropriate clothing and accessories to wear, and ensuring that everyone has the right gear for the labor-intensive work. Your company may have certain PPE requirements or leave it up to the employees to decide which personal protective equipment is necessary for their daily activities at work.
What Are the Necessary High-Visibility PPE Items?
Although what’s a necessary high-visibility PPE item may depend on the occupation, company requirements, and what the worker wants to wear each day, there are certain personal protective equipment items that are often crucial for the job. When you choose your high-visibility PPE items, you want to check to see if the items meet ANSI Class 2 or Class 3 standards for safety. Here is a checklist of some necessary high-visibility PPE items:
High-Visibility Jackets
High-visibility jackets that are brightly colored and reflective are ideal outerwear pieces for jobs where you want to be easy to see as you go about your work-related duties. You can choose a storm jacket that has top-notch waterproof qualities or opt for a non-waterproof version.
High-Visibility Mesh Vests
If your primary concern is being seen by all you come in contact with on the job site but don’t want to wear a heavy jacket, a high-visibility mesh vest may be a perfect work outfit addition. The vests are lightweight and offer reflective qualities to keep you safe as you work.
High-Visibility Full-Zip Sweatshirts
For an easy to see clothing item that you can put on and take off easily while working, a high-visibility sweatshirt may be ideal. These brightly colored sweatshirts are often available in flame-resistant options, so you can choose a multi-purpose sweatshirt for your days at work.
Long Sleeve and Short Sleeve High-Visibility T-Shirts
Sometimes your occupation involves a variety of different hazards and multi-faceted t-shirts may be helpful. You can find long sleeve t-shirts and short sleeve t-shirts that offer high-visibility qualities, flame-resistant materials, and come in a variety of material weights. If you have to work outside in the dark or in low-visibility situations, high-visibility clothing can help ensure that you’re seen by people driving by, such as when you work on roadway construction sites. If you work in a job role where fire hazards are present, you’ll want to have the right amount of flame-resistant clothing on your PPE checklist.
Stock Up on PPE By Shopping J.M.D. Sox Outlet
You can never have too much PPE in your closet. Whether you complete the same job duties every day or your work role changes periodically, it’s important to have the right personal protective equipment to wear each time you go to work. When you’re ready to stock up on PPE, trust this important purchase to J.M.D. Sox Outlet.
J.M.D. Sox Outlet offers a wide array of high-visibility PPE, including jackets, t-shirts, vests, and more. If you’re a tradesperson or any individual who works with their hands, we have the products you need to complete your daily work duties with confidence.
Visit the J.M.D. Sox Outlet website today to learn more about our products or visit our store location!