PPE Allocation Table & Issue Register on Site

An inspector walks onto a site and the first thing they see is heads. The hard hat is either there or it isn't. The boots are either there or they aren't. It's the fastest breach to spot - and one of the most frequently fined. Except that "I've got hard hats in the container" means nothing without paperwork. What counts is the PPE allocation table and the issue register signed by the worker. In the BudoReady STANDARD package you get both documents ready to have names filled in - no faffing about, no downloading templates off the internet that aren't quite tailored to construction anyway.

The key points in brief

• PPE (personal protective equipment) means: hard hat, safety footwear, gloves, eye, hearing and respiratory protection, and a harness for work at height.
• You must have an allocation table - which PPE is assigned to which job role. It's a document, not the foreman's memory.
• You must have an issue register signed by the worker - who received what, and when.
• "I bought hard hats" without paperwork isn't enough. What counts is documented allocation and training in how to use the equipment.
• Every item of PPE must carry the CE mark and be matched to the actual hazard at the job role.

What PPE is and why the inspector asks about it from the doorstep

PPE stands for personal protective equipment. In plain terms - it's everything a worker puts on to avoid getting hurt. The obligation to provide it isn't the inspector's whim, it's Articles 2376–2378 of the Labour Code and the Regulation of the Minister of Labour and Social Policy of 26 September 1997 on general OSH (occupational health and safety) provisions, which has a whole section devoted to PPE.

Why does the inspector ask about it right at the start? Because it's visible to the naked eye and can be checked in five minutes. They don't have to dig through technical documentation or count metres of scaffolding. They look at the people, look at the paperwork, and compare. If something doesn't add up - you get a report. It's one of the fastest breaches to spot, including during a remote inspection, when the inspector asks you to email scans of the table and register.

Which PPE comes into play on a construction site

On a construction site the list is fairly predictable, but every item has to be matched to what's actually happening on the ground:

• Head protection - a safety helmet. Standard anywhere something might fall or where you're working underneath someone.
• Foot protection - safety footwear with a toecap and an anti-penetration midsole. Nails, rebar, heavy items.
• Hand protection - gloves. Different ones for bricklaying, for chemical work, for cutting.
• Eye and face protection - safety glasses, goggles, face shields. Grinding, cutting, chiselling, welding.
• Hearing protection - ear defenders or earplugs. Anywhere noise exceeds the permitted level.
• Respiratory protection - half-masks, masks. Dust, welding fumes, vapours.
• Fall protection for work at height - safety harnesses, lanyards, energy absorbers. Work above 1 metre is already an issue.

The PPE allocation table - the first document you must have

The allocation table is a simple document that states plainly: this job role is entitled to these particular protective items. It's not a shopping list. It's the assignment of PPE to the hazards present at a given job role. The inspector looks at the table, looks at the worker, and checks whether the person is wearing what the table says.

The key is this: you match PPE to the actual hazards, not by guesswork. If there's noise at the job role - there has to be hearing protection. If there's work at height - there have to be harnesses. A missing entry in the table where there's an obvious hazard is a red flag for the inspector.

An example PPE allocation table

Here's roughly how it looks in practice for a few typical job roles in a construction micro-company:

Job role	Required PPE
Bricklayer / general construction worker	Safety helmet, safety footwear, work gloves, safety glasses (when cutting/grinding), work clothing
Worker at height (roofer, scaffolder)	Helmet with chin strap, safety footwear, safety harness with lanyard and energy absorber, gloves
Operator of impact tools / grinders	Helmet, safety footwear, safety goggles, hearing protectors, dust half-mask, anti-vibration gloves
Welder	Welding face shield, welding gloves, leather apron, safety footwear, respiratory protection
Earthworks / excavation worker	Helmet, safety footwear with toecap, high-visibility vest, gloves, hearing protection (near machinery)

This is an example - your table has to fit what you actually do. But the layout is always the same: job role on the left, list of PPE on the right. In the STANDARD package you get a ready-made template with typical construction job roles already filled in; all you have to do is adapt it.

The PPE issue register - the second document, without which the table isn't enough

The table says what everyone is entitled to. The issue register proves that you actually issued it. These are two different documents and you need both. The table on its own without the register is just theory. The register on its own without the table means there's no system. The inspector wants to see both.

The issue register is simply a list: who received it, what they received, when they received it and - most importantly - the worker's signature confirming they accepted it. The signature is the heart of this document. Without a signature the inspector will conclude that nothing was issued, even if the hard hats are stacked to the ceiling in the store.

What a correct entry in the register must contain

• The worker's full name and their job role.
• The type of PPE issued (e.g. safety helmet, work footwear size 43).
• The date of issue.
• The period of use, or a note of the expected service life, where applicable.
• The worker's signature confirming receipt.

Keep it up to date. A new person on site - an entry and a signature straight away, before they set foot on the ground. Replacing a worn hard hat - another entry. This isn't a document you fill in once and tuck away in a drawer.

"I bought hard hats" isn't enough - what the inspector is actually looking for

This is the most common misunderstanding. The foreman shows the invoice for hard hats, shows the box of boots, and thinks the matter is sorted. But the inspector asks about three things an invoice doesn't cover:

1. Allocation - whether the table clearly states who is entitled to what. An invoice doesn't show that.
2. Issue with a signature - whether the worker confirmed receipt in the register. An invoice doesn't show that.
3. Training in use - whether the person knows how to put a harness on correctly, how to check a helmet before work, when to replace a half-mask. Simply buying it doesn't take care of that.

In other words: what counts is documented allocation and training in use, not just proof of purchase. This distinction costs companies the most grief during an inspection. You've got the kit, you've got good intentions, but you haven't got the paperwork - and from the inspector's point of view the obligation hasn't been met.

The CE mark and matching to hazards - what the inspector looks at

Every item of PPE must carry the CE mark. It's the sign that the item has passed a conformity assessment and is fit to protect against a specific hazard. A market-stall helmet without CE is not personal protective equipment within the meaning of the regulations - it's a piece of plastic on your head.

The second issue is matching. PPE must be matched to the hazards present at the job role. Bricklaying gloves won't protect against chemicals. Ordinary glasses won't replace a face shield when welding. A dust half-mask won't cope with vapours. The inspector doesn't just check whether PPE is there - they check whether it's the right one.

It's worth keeping the manufacturer's instructions and expiry-date information with the PPE documentation too. Safety harnesses and energy absorbers have a defined service life and are subject to periodic inspections - just as machinery and equipment documentation requires keeping an eye on deadlines. The inspector can check both.

How this ties in with the rest of your OSH documentation

The PPE register doesn't hang in a vacuum. It works in tandem with other documents that together form a system. The most important link is workstation OSH instructions - these describe how to carry out work safely at a given job role, including how to use the allocated PPE. The allocation table says "what", the instruction says "how".

For construction work there's also the Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of 6 February 2003 on OSH during construction works - it sets out the requirements specific to the building site, including work at height, where fall-protection PPE is absolutely fundamental.

Why this matters right now

From 8 July 2026 the reform of the National Labour Inspectorate (PIP) comes into force. Inspections will be more efficient, and inspectors will reach faster for the breaches that are simplest to check. The PPE register and allocation table are exactly the type of document that can be verified in a few minutes, remotely too. If you don't have it - you're an easy target. If you've got it properly organised - you take one of the inspection's first questions off your plate.

The most common mistakes that cost you during an inspection

• Just an invoice, no register - you have proof of purchase but no proof of issue with a signature.
• A table with no basis in reality - on paper the harnesses are there, on site nobody wears them.
• No signatures - the register is filled in, but the workers never signed.
• PPE without CE - cheap kit with no marking, which formally isn't protective equipment.
• Poor matching - there's some PPE, but not the kind that protects against the actual hazard at the job role.
• No updates - a new worker started on site, and there's no trace of it in the register.

All these mistakes share a common denominator: the document exists only in the foreman's head, not on paper with a signature. The inspector doesn't read minds.

Have your PPE register ready - the BudoReady STANDARD package

You don't have to write this from scratch or download random templates that don't suit construction. The STANDARD package at 449 zł is 27 OSH documentation files for a micro-company under PKD 43 - and among them you'll find the PPE allocation table and the PPE issue register ready to complete. You open it, enter the names and job roles, hand it over for signing - and it's sorted before the inspector asks.

If you're just starting out, there's also STARTER at 299 zł (10 files, the basics). If you want the full set with no exceptions - FULL at 749 zł (45 files). But for the PPE topic specifically, STANDARD is the one that hits the mark. The promotion runs until 7 July 2026.

See BudoReady packages

This article is for information purposes and does not replace advice from an OSH specialist or an individual assessment of the legal position. Document templates require individual adaptation to the realities of your company and to specific job roles, and it's worth verifying the current legal position as at the date you use it.