Protective gloves for hairdressers

EN ISO 374-6:2025 defines the requirements for hairdressers’ gloves, to protect the wearers from dangerous chemicals and microorganisms.

The EN ISO 374 series of standards specifies the requirements and test methods to assess the performance of protective gloves against dangerous chemicals and microorganisms. In November 2025, this series was expanded with the introduction of part 6, to specifically address risks associated with the hairdressing industry. When these requirements are satisfied, glove manufacturers can claim compliance with EN ISO 374-6:2025 and the product packaging is able to include the specific graphical symbol for hairdressers (figure 1).

This summary article will explain the key requirements and the notable differences between EN ISO 374-6 and EN ISO 374-1:2016:A1:2018. This latter standard has been established for many years and states the terminology and performance requirements for gloves intended to protect the user against dangerous chemicals.

An important point to note is that although the text in EN ISO 374-6 references other parts of the ISO 374 series, at the time of writing this article some ISO versions have not been adopted by CEN. Therefore, only the current EN ISO versions are referenced in this article because these are accepted by Notified Bodies. For example, ISO 374-1:2024 is referenced in EN ISO 374-6. However, the current CEN version is EN ISO 374-1:2016+A1:2018, which is the current harmonised standard.

Key requirements of EN ISO 374-6:2025

Gloves for hairdressers must satisfy the appropriate clauses in the general requirements standard for protective gloves (EN ISO 21420:2020+A1:2024 – see the article ‘The requirements of EN ISO 21420:2020+A1:2024’). The gloves are to be single use, not contain seams or be welded, and only be used for one task and one client for a maximum time of 60 minutes. The gloves need to be ‘powder free’ when tested to ISO 21171:2006 method B, which is defined as not exceeding 2 milligrams of powder per glove.

Two types of gloves are specified, depending on the minimum glove length. These are ‘Type 240’ for hand protection only, where the minimum glove length is 240 mm, and ‘Type 300’ for hand and forearm protection and which has a minimum glove length of 300 mm. Gloves must meet the requirements for mechanical strength summarised in table 1 and provide protection against either bacteria and fungi, or bacteria, fungi and viruses when assessed against EN ISO 374-5:2016.

Table 1: Differences between EN ISO 374-1:2016+A1:2018 and EN ISO 374-6:2025
Different test property/requirement	EN ISO 374-1:2016+A1:2018	EN ISO 374-6:202
Permeation challenge chemicals	The number of chemicals tested is dependent on the glove type. These are selected from list of 18 chemicals in EN ISO 374-1 table 2.	All four chemicals listed in EN ISO 374-6 table 2 must meet the requirement.
Minimum breakthrough time to achieve a performance level	>10 minutes (Type C) >30 minutes (Types A & B).	>60 minutes
Conditioning and test temperature	(23 ±1)°C	(33 ±2)°C
Acceptable spread of the three individual results	Must be within 20% of the mean of the three results.	Failure if at least one result <60 minutes after retest
Glove type/glove length	Types A, B or C depending on chemical claims. Length stated in the EN ISO 21420 general requirements.	Type 240 or Type 300 depending on minimum glove length.
Mechanical strength	No requirement specified.	Thermoplastic materials: Median value ≥3.6 N, each result ≥1.8 N. Other materials: Median value ≥6.0 N, each result ≥3.0 N.
Degradation	To be determined according to EN ISO 374-4:2013 for each chemical claimed in the marking.	No requirement other than the protective glove material must remain functional after the permeation test.
Powder content	No requirement specified.	≤2.0 mg per glove when tested to ISO 21171:2006.
Resistance to microorganisms	Must not leak when tested according to EN ISO 374-2:2014, clauses 7.2 and 7.3 (air and water leak).	Shall meet one of the two requirements in ISO 374-5:2024 clause 5.4 table 1.

The most significant requirement is with the permeation. The gloves must not exceed the permeation rate of 1.0 μg cm^-2 min^-1 before 60 minutes when tested against the four challenge chemicals listed in table 2. Although the test method to be used is the established EN 16523-1:2015+A1:2018, the test temperature is 33°C which is a unique permeation test temperature specifically for EN ISO 374-6.

Table 2: The list of test chemicals in EN ISO 374-6:2025
Challenge chemical	CAS number
4% para-phenylene diamine	106-50-3
10% ammonium persulphate	7727-54-0
20% ammonium thioglycolate	5421-46-5
10% ethanol	64-17-5

These four challenge chemicals were selected due to their relevance to the hairdressing industry. Para-phenylene diamine (PPD) is used in hair dye, ammonium persulphate is used as a hair bleach, and ammonium thioglycolate is used as a hair straightener. Ethanol is used in cosmetic products such as gels and sprays for hair styling. In all cases, the chemicals are diluted in water to the required concentrations.

Differences between EN ISO 374-1 and EN ISO 374-6

Manufactures can decide to add EN ISO 374-6 marking to glove products that already satisfy the requirements of EN ISO 374-1. However, protective gloves are also able to be a PPE Category III chemical-resistant glove based only on fulfilling the requirements of EN ISO 374-6. For either standard, Module C2 or Module D evidence of ongoing conformity will be required once the EU type-examination certificate has been obtained in order for the gloves to be placed on the market.

Gloves which claim protection against dangerous chemicals are tested in accordance with the requirements in EN ISO 374-1. Protective gloves for hairdressers are defined in EN ISO 374-6 as ‘gloves to protect the skin of the hairdresser during the handling of chemicals and the use of water during their work’. The key differences between the two standards are summarised in table 1.

There are also many similarities between the two standards. These include:

• the same normalised permeation rate of 1.0 μg cm^-2 min^-1
• the requirement to comply with the general requirements in EN ISO 21420:2020+A1:2024 for clauses 4, 5 and 7, which includes sizing and dexterity, innocuousness and glove marking
• for penetration, the glove must not leak when tested according to EN ISO 374-2:2014, 7.2 and 7.3 (air and water leak) which is identical to the ‘bacteria-fungi’ resistance to microorganism requirement in EN ISO 374-6
• EN 16523-1:2015+2018 is the permeation test method to be used (with modifications for EN ISO 374-6). Test specimens are prepared from the palm area.

Explanation of key differences

The most significant difference between EN ISO 374-1 and EN ISO 374-6 is with the permeation testing. EN ISO 374-1 details six performance levels depending on the breakthrough time (the time taken for a measured amount of the challenge chemical to migrate through the glove material).

Eighteen challenge chemicals are listed in table 1, with the glove type (A, B or C) dependent on how many of the 18 chemicals achieve a minimum performance level 2. This gives a general chemical resistance under laboratory conditions at 23°C with the 18 chemicals representing a wide range of chemical classes, such as acids, alkalines, hydrocarbons and peroxides. As mentioned earlier, EN ISO 374-6 is very different, as the four challenge chemicals (table 2) were selected due to their relevance to the hairdressing industry.

Although the same permeation test method is referenced in both standards – EN 16523-1 – the test temperature specified in EN ISO 374-6 is 33°C, and the duration of the test is relatively short, as the glove material must provide a breakthrough time of greater than 60 minutes against each of the four chemicals. The maximum performance level in EN ISO 374-1 is level 6, and this corresponds to a breakthrough time of greater than 480 minutes.

Warning statements in the user instructions

Gloves that are designed to protect against dangerous chemicals and protective gloves for hairdressers need to be marked in accordance with the general requirements for protective gloves in EN ISO 21420:2020+A1:2024, in addition to the specific EN ISO 374-1 and EN ISO 374-6 claims. Information supplied by the manufacturer in the user instructions for hairdressers’ gloves must incorporate the statements in clause 7 of EN ISO 374-6. This includes the glove type (240 or 300), the four permeation chemicals and words that the glove shall not be used more than 60 minutes – and preferably be replaced within 30 minutes.

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