Gloves, Bare-Hand Contact, Work Attire and Personal Habits

Single-Use Gloves: Selection, Safe Use, and Handwashing

Single-use gloves serve as an essential barrier between a food handler's hands and the items served to guests, but they only protect food when selected and used properly. Food service managers must purchase gloves that are approved for food contact and verify they are used solely for their intended purpose. To protect both employees and guests from allergic reactions, managers should choose nonlatex food-contact gloves. Providing staff with a range of sizes is equally critical: gloves that are too large slip and create contamination hazards, while gloves that are too tight tear easily. Managers must train employees to choose gloves that fit securely without tearing and to put them on by touching only the cuff to keep food-contact surfaces clean.

A foundational principle of food safety is that wearing single-use gloves is never a substitute for thorough and proper handwashing. Managers must ensure that staff wash their hands before putting on gloves to begin any task involving food, as well as whenever handwashing is otherwise required. Gloves are designated for single use only; managers must require that gloves are used for one specific task and then discarded. Employees must never wash, rinse, or attempt to reuse single-use gloves under any circumstances, as washing breaks down glove integrity and spreads pathogens across surfaces.

Managers must actively monitor glove condition and enforce mandatory replacement triggers throughout every shift. Staff must discard and replace gloves immediately if they become torn, punctured, or soiled. Employees must take off their gloves before switching to a new food-preparation task, such as moving from slicing raw vegetables to preparing sandwiches, and wash their hands when required before putting on a fresh pair. Discarding gloves and washing hands is also non-negotiable after any interruption, including answering the facility telephone or returning from a break. Furthermore, managers must ensure staff discard gloves and wash hands immediately after handling raw meat, poultry, or seafood before touching ready-to-eat food. For long, uninterrupted tasks, managers should train staff to change single-use gloves at least every four hours as ServSafe guidance, and sooner whenever they become soiled or damaged or the task is interrupted; the FDA Food Code does not specify a four-hour glove-change interval.