Slip-resistant or non-slip shoes, in contrast to traditional shoe designs, have been designed to reduce slips, trips, and accidental falls. Their outsoles contain sticky treads that keep you safe on your feet while walking on damp and slippery terrain.
Do slip-resistant shoes actually work? Sure thing! With non-slip footwear, you can confidently navigate tough, slick surfaces such as oily kitchen floors or icy sidewalks, knowing that the specialized traction patterns will help prevent unfortunate everyday life and accidents at work and keep your feet safe.
They are now available in a variety of styles to fit any taste!
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Who Can Benefit from a Non-Slip Pair?
Slip-resistant shoes are vital for job safety (slippery floors, anyone?) and make excellent companions for outdoor adventures, ensuring you stay sure-footed in any weather condition.
Slip-resistant footwear is perfect for construction and food service workers, healthcare professionals, and those who operate in industries where workplace injuries are more common. Non-slip footwear is also essential for anyone walking in damp conditions or on slippery terrain.
1) Workers in specialized industries
People who operate in environments where slip hazards are common, such as restaurants, hospitals, boats, construction sites, warehouses, or other slippery locations.
2) Health and safety professionals
Occupational health and safety managers, consultants, and persons in charge of workplace safety regulations.
3) General consumers
Anyone wishing to purchase shoes with improved grip and slip resistance for everyday use or specific activities.
4) Parents and carers
They are concerned about the safety of their children or elderly family members who may be more vulnerable to slip and fall accidents.
5) Active individuals
Hikers, runners, and athletes looking for shoes that enhance their grip on various terrains.
How Do Slip-Resistant Shoes Work?
Non-slip shoes are designed to prevent or reduce slips, trips, and falls, which can result in ankle sprains. But how can non-slip shoes exactly do this? Athletic shoes with higher degrees of friction have deeper tread grooves. Because they grip the ground, deep grooves can help reduce slips and falls. The more grooves the shoes have on their outsoles, the greater slip resistance they offer.
The friction generated by each tread groove ranges from 0.018 to 0.108 on average, depending on the surface you're walking on. The secret of shoe grip is found in the delicate dance between outsole patterns and their impact on traction. Circle outsoles and inventive designs have the ability to strengthen grip, making them wet and oily surface superheroes.
Flat designs induce slippery predicaments as they fail to hold liquids away, increasing the likelihood of a not-so-graceful tumble. The tread material of anti-slip soles is also important: high-quality rubber grips well on wet and oily surfaces and provides excellent traction.
Why Do Non-Slip Restaurant Shoes Matter?
Anyone who has worked in a restaurant can tell you that a regular shift involves many miles and pitfalls. It would be best to have shoes that can withstand the elements while keeping you comfortable—all while doing the physically demanding labor of cooking or serving all day and night.
Here's why it's in your best interest to choose the most comfortable and non-slip restaurant shoes available:
Hot Spills and Splatters
Whatever tight schedule your restaurant management runs, something will always end up on the floor. Combine scattered lemon wedges, melted ice cubes, and errant grease slicks with a server-balancing dinner for a four-top, and you've got a recipe for disaster.
According to recent Emory University research, food service workers “have a 60 percent higher rate of occupational injury than workers in other industries." Non-slip shoes are required for both FOH and BOH workers. In fact, if you don't already have a policy requiring non-slip shoes for your employees, create one right away. You'll be protecting your company as well as your employees.
Arch Support
It is common for restaurant workers to work long hours on their feet. According to one study, servers walk an average of 23,000 steps each day – that's more than 10 miles! According to Livestrong.com, our feet bear 200,000 to 300,000 lbs of stress for each mile walked. Arch support is crucial for these reasons.
Slip-resistant shoes that support the natural curve of our feet, as opposed to flat shoes like flip-flops, not only improve comfort during long shifts but also prevent injuries. Ankle sprains, ankle twists, and falling arches can all come from engaging in vigorous activity without sufficient support.
Non-Slip Shoes: Key Characteristics
In terms of shoes, what is the difference between regular shoes and non-slip ones? The design, materials, and pattern of the sole distinguish non-slippery shoes from other types of shoes.
Materials
When shoes come into contact with the ground, the materials used for their creation come into play. The best non-slip work shoes are usually softer on the outside, with outsoles made of high-grade rubber and sometimes synthetic rubber. Rubber soles make them slip-resistant, giving them a firm grip on slippery, wet, or greasy surfaces.
Design
Aside from slip-resistant soles, the shoe's design impacts its slip-resistance level. Slip-resistant work shoes have a unique design that allows them to provide a stable grip in a range of styles.
Pattern
The right outsole pattern promotes traction and provides a greater grip for the wearer to prevent slippage under various circ*mstances. What kind of sole is non-slip? Most non-slippery shoe soles have a rough surface – interlocking tread patterns embedded under the outsole.
A particular enclosed tread pattern leaves no room for fluids inside the outsole. Instead, it channels liquids away from the shoe, ensuring your foot remains stable in any position thanks to its rough surface.
The 9 Best Non-Slip Shoes For Restaurants
There is no 'one size fits all' solution for restaurant workers.
Of course, everyone in the home could wear the same nonslip shoes, but cooks work in a different setting than servers.
Cooks may want a sturdier shoe without laces, but servers may prefer a shoe that mimics a walking shoe since they will be putting in physical miles during each shift.
I'll make sure to let you know how and why the shoes work for a specific restaurant position.
1. Dansko: Excellent Multi-Purpose, Long-Lasting Shoes
Dansko was founded in 1990 and is a pioneer in nonslip footwear.
They specialize in clogs that are popular with people outside of the service industry, particularly those who work in hospitals.
Dansko's shoes are well-made and of great quality. They are easy to clean due to their smooth uniform design, which is usually a plus when working in restaurants.
Shoes with a lot of stitching tend to have a dirty buildup along their seams and might look dingy over time.
Dansko will last you for years, but others say it takes a long time to break in. Once you do, they are wonderfully comfy.
Some people hate high heels, which is a hallmark feature of Dansko shoes, and without a lot of support around and above the heels, it's easy to roll your ankles. Danskos can be worn by both front and back-of-house personnel.
2. Skechers: Ideal for Front-Of-House Restaurant Employees
Skechers is another name that has been around for a long time in the service industry, mostly focusing on front-of-house footwear.
These shoes are ideal for servers. Slip-resistant and oil-resistant, with a memory foam insert to keep your feet comfy and a loose fit to keep your toes around when walking.
They offer smooth leather uppers that are easy to clean, adjustable laces, and a shock-absorbing midsole for good support while working long hours.
Choose either black or white, and you have two width options if you have wide feet.
3. Mozo: Simple, Comfortable, No-Frills Shoes
The Mozo Sharkz II has slip-resistant soles, synthetic water-resistant uppers, side ventilation for breathability, elastic at the foot hole for simple on and off, detachable insoles, and is very easy to clean.
4. Crocs: Lightweight, comfortable, and easy-to-clean shoes
Crocs were already extremely popular among culinary experts before they decided to create a shoe specifically for restaurant workers.
The design is similar to conventional Crocs, but the Bistro Clogs are entirely closed-toed to protect the feet from hot spills.
However, several customers have complained that the size is slightly different and that they run on the small side. Others said that their feet were having difficulty breathing.
Crocs have a slip-resistant tread, a molded footbed, and a strap that rests on the heel to keep the shoe in place. Because crops are created from mold, they are exceptionally easy to clean. You can completely submerge them in water and scrub the insides and outsides till they are as good as new.
5. Shoes for Crews: Simple, inexpensive, and fits most shoes
The Crews' Shoes Overshoes are ideal for when someone forgets to wear non-slip shoes to work, or when you have visitors who you would like to show the entire restaurant but want them to stay safe.
The best thing about these is that they stretch to fit numerous shoe sizes, so you don't need a pair for every size foot.
They are quite affordable, and they assist in setting your mind at ease as well as prevent the restaurant from liability claims if someone comes in without slip-resistant footwear.
6. Birkenstock: Ideal for restaurant back-of-house staff
Birkenstock has been creating shoes since 1774. Anyone who has had a pair will tell you that these are wonderful shoes.
The Boston Super Grip sports a true rubber outsole and leather uppers with metal buckles to tighten or loosen the shoe depending on your foot size.
Birkenstock's famed comfort is created by its cork and latex footbeds. Be advised, however, that the break-in phase for a pair of Birkenstocks might take weeks, but once they're broken in, you'll never go back.
The cork and latex footbed molds to the contour of your foot, giving you the feeling that you have a personalized pair of shoes.
One of the best things about Birkenstock is that you can send your shoes in to be replaced if the soles wear out. You'll keep your comfortable footbeds and uppers, but you'll get brand new non-slip soles.
Birkenstocks can be worn by both front and back-of-house employees, although they are particularly popular with back-of-house employees.
7. The Vans Restaurant Shoe: Your Favorite Shoes Redesigned
Vans is an old shoe company, but their new Made for the Makers line of non-slip shoes shows that they understand the needs of restaurant workers in protective footwear.
Made for Makers features a non-slip vulcanized outsole, a canvas top that repels liquids and spills, and padded collars for support and comfort.
This shoe is a slip-on, but it also comes in a lace-up version, and if you need extra ankle support, they also make a high-top shoe. All the models come in black.
8. Snibbs: Comfortable Shoes With Long-Lasting Style
Snibbs was founded in 2015 by Chef Daniel Shemtob. He was tired of his work shoes breaking apart, so he resolved to fix the problem himself and began developing the perfect non-slip shoe.
The shoes are fashionable, and they may be worn by both kitchen and front-of-house personnel.
Snibbs claims it will be 'the last work shoe you will ever need.
The shoes are designed for all-day comfort, are slip and water-resistant, the uppers are constructed of sturdy, long-lasting material, come with a customized Ortholite insole, are slip-on, and look fantastic at work or when you go out.
9. Keep: Stylish Shoes That Don't Sacrifice Quality Or Function
Keep's non-slip shoe collection appeals to the same crowd that models their shoes after streetwear brands.
The shoes are attractive and simple, and they will look great outside of the restaurant on a day off.
Keep has gained an advantage by collaborating with cooks and crews to help them design their non-slip shoes.
Working together with people who use Keep shoes allows them to troubleshoot any issues that occur from wearing the shoes over time.
The Homer Black Non-Slip is seen here sports a non-slip rubber outsole, synthetic nubuck uppers that are both water and oil-resistant, extra heel and arch support on the insole, and is very easy to clean.
Keep shoes are cruelty-free and ethically created in factories inspected by international third parties.
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