What 29 CFR 1926.102 requires (plain English)
29 CFR 1926.102 requires employers to protect construction workers' eyes and faces from job hazards. Eye injuries are among the most common, and most preventable, construction injuries, and most happen to workers who were not wearing eye protection or were wearing the wrong type for the hazard. The standard is hazard-driven: the employer must ensure each affected employee uses appropriate eye or face protection when exposed to hazards from flying particles, molten metal, liquid chemicals, acids or caustic liquids, chemical gases or vapors, or potentially injurious light radiation.
The key word is "appropriate." Different hazards demand different devices: impact hazards (grinding, chipping) call for safety glasses or goggles with side protection; chemical splash calls for tightly sealed goggles and often a face shield; and light radiation from welding or cutting requires filter lenses of the correct shade. A face shield is a secondary protector worn over primary eye protection, not a substitute for it. All eye and face protection must meet the ANSI/ISEA Z87.1 consensus standard (or be demonstrated to be at least as effective), which is why compliant devices carry a "Z87" marking.
Because PPE is the last line of defense in the hierarchy of controls, 1926.102 works best alongside engineering controls (machine guards, shields, ventilation) that reduce the hazard at the source. The employer must also account for workers who wear prescription glasses: providing eye protection that incorporates the prescription or that can be worn over it without disturbing the fit. Required eye and face protection is provided by the employer at no cost to the worker under 1926.95.