When the employer must provide work clothing
The title on work clothing in Book IX of the code requires work clothing where work is dirty without risks that call for protective clothing (Article IX.3-1). The employer provides it free of charge from the start and renews it in time (Article IX.3-3). Making the employee wash or repair it is prohibited, even in return for an allowance (Article IX.3-4).
Exceptions
A collective agreement can set an allowance for purchase or renewal, and can let the employee wash the clothing themselves for a fee under strict conditions. Clothing that protects against risks is not work clothing but personal protective equipment. A uniform required by royal decree or by a generally binding collective agreement falls outside these rules in principle.
What is the risk?
A breach of the Well-being at Work Act and its implementing decrees, such as the code, is a level 3 offence under Article 127 of the Social Criminal Code: an administrative fine of € 1,000 to € 10,000. If it causes harm to health or an accident at work, the penalty is heavier.
What to do
Check whether the work is dirty and whether your sector agreement has a clothing scheme. Provide work clothing free of charge, have it cleaned at your expense and do not let it be taken home, except under the conditions of the code.
Would you like to know whether your sector imposes an allowance for work clothing?
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Sources
Every amount and deadline on this page was checked against these official sources, last consulted on .