How do I choose safety shoes?

What should be considered when choosing work safety shoes?

The safety shoes you choose should provide the level of protection you need, taking into account comfort, aesthetics, and price criteria. Shoes should also offer good abrasion resistance to prevent premature wear. There are many criteria when choosing shoes. This choice may vary according to the sector. For example, the employee needs to determine whether they can call boots or trainers. In addition, it should be decided whether the shoe should be made of leather, fabric, or special material to provide waterproofing. Perhaps shoes with steel toe caps are the right choice, perhaps composite toe caps are more suitable. The only way to know what you need from your safety shoes is to consider the hazards and risks associated with your work and compare this with the ratings and codes offered by each shoe.

The best solution to this is to choose safety footwear that meets the various factors and standards required by the employee's company, supervisor, and manager, as judged by the working environment and job.

1) Selection of safety shoes suitable for the working environment

Understanding the environment in which a worker works is the first step towards understanding the requirements that the right safety footwear must fulfil. This is especially important if a worker is working in the oil and gas industries or near hazardous areas such as electricity.
In heavy-duty work on rough terrain, it is important that a safety shoe provides strong ankle protection against both impacts and twisting angles.

To know which footwear you need, it is important to understand the different subcategories and protective features offered by safety footwear of category S:

  • SB = Basic requirements for safety footwear met - 200 joule Protection
  • S1 = 200 joule Toe Cap Protection. Closed seat region (fully enclosed heel). Anti-static properties. Energy absorption of seat region.
  • S2 = 200 joule Toe Cap Protection. Closed seat region (fully enclosed heel). Anti-static properties. Energy absorption of seat region. Water penetration and water absorption resistance.
  • S3 = 200 joule Toe Cap Protection. Closed seat region (fully enclosed heel). Anti-static properties. Energy absorption of seat region. Water penetration and water absorption resistance. Plus penetration resistance. Cleated outsole.
  • S4 = 200 joule Toe Cap Protection. All rubber or all polymeric footwear with anti-static properties. Energy absorption of seat region.
  • S5 = 200 joule Toe Cap Protection. All rubber or all polymeric footwear with anti-static properties. Energy absorption of seat region. Plus penetration resistance. Cleated outsole.

For the slip-resistant rating:

  • SRA = Tested on ceramic tile wetted with dilute soap solution
  • SRB = Tested on steel with glycerol
  • SRC = SRA + SRB

Rona Shoes comply with the standards 20345:2011 and also have SRC class non-slip outsole. For more information about the 20345 standards, you can take a look at our article "What are the safety shoe standards?".

2) Selection of safety shoes suitable for frequency of use (comfort)

When choosing safety shoes, it is necessary to consider the insole, midsole, shank, and outsole. All of these offer firm support to the foot and thus increase comfort. We have all experienced how difficult it is to focus on what you are doing if the safety shoes you are wearing are uncomfortable or painful. If this discomfort has to be maintained for long hours, it can have a serious impact on both the health and productivity of the worker. If you spend 10 hours a day working on your feet, you will undoubtedly need comfortable work shoes. The higher the frequency of use, the more important comfort becomes. Ideally, safety shoes should be no different from normal shoes. We should forget that we are wearing them, so we can focus on our work. Rona Shoes are very light and comfortable compared to other safety shoes. These are the best safety shoes that are cleverly designed to look like normal everyday trainers. You can easily use these safety shoes in all kinds of environments both at work and in your daily life. Unfortunately, this is not always the case with most safety shoes on the market.


Rona Shoes will improve your work performance by maximizing comfort, invigorating you, and keeping your mind free from distractions.

When choosing work shoes, you can visit the Rona Shoes site, which reveals its difference with its quality and price policy in every product.


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