A new COVID-19 poster and video from federal safety authorities provide helpful tips for workers who wear masks:

• Wash your hands before you put on a mask and before you take it off.
• Inspect it for damage or dampness before wearing, and don’t touch it once it’s on.
• If you don’t have to reuse it because of supply shortages, dispose of it in a trashcan and wash your hands once again.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration created the downloadable poster and a video for employers and workers about the best way to put on and take off a respirator. More businesses are requiring employees to wear masks to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The instructions from OSHA include a technique to ensure a secure mask fit:

• When you first put the respirator on, put both hands over it and inhale and exhale quickly.
• If you feel air leaking from the edges or around the nose, adjust the straps or the metal nosepiece, if your mask has one.
• Repeat until you get a proper seal. If you can’t, try a different mask.

Click here to watch the video, or follow the link to a get a printable version of the poster to hang up at your plant or office. The video and poster are also available in Spanish.