"Cut level A4" is a measured laboratory rating, not marketing. Here is what the scale means, which level each kind of work actually calls for, and gloves that print their rating where you can check it.
In a hurry — the picks (affiliate links — as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases; the level guide below)
| Everyday A4, lightweight | Schwer A4 AIR-SKIN |
| Crew box, A4 12-pack | Schwer A4 12 pairs, reinforced thumb |
| High-risk cutting, A7 | Schwer ProGuard A7 |
| Light-duty general handling | MicroFoam nitrile-coated, 12 pairs |
OSHA's hand-protection rule (1910.138, applied to construction alongside 1926.95) is performance-based: employers must select hand protection appropriate to the hazard. The selection tool the industry uses is ANSI/ISEA 105, whose 2016 edition replaced the old 5-level cut scale with nine levels, A1 through A9, based on the grams of force a blade needs to cut through the material:
Two honest notes. The rating is printed inside a shield mark on the glove back or cuff — if a listing claims a level the glove itself doesn't carry, believe the glove. And cut resistance is not puncture or abrasion resistance; ANSI 105 rates those separately, so match the rating to the actual hazard rather than buying the biggest number.
Gloves fail on site the way glasses fail — they come off. Nitrile or polyurethane palm coatings give grip on dry and oily material and keep the knit breathable, which is what keeps gloves on hands in July. Buy by the dozen: gloves are consumables with a replacement cycle measured in weeks, and the crew box needs spares the same way it needs vests and glasses.
A4 is the working default for general construction hazards — sheet metal, shingle edges, utility-knife work. Go higher (A6+) only for genuinely blade-heavy tasks; go lighter only where there is no real cut hazard and dexterity wins.
No. The pre-2016 scale topped out at 5 and used a different test; the current A-scale runs A1–A9 with defined gram thresholds. A modern A4 glove is roughly the old level 3–4 territory, tested more consistently.
OSHA requires hand protection appropriate to the hazard rather than naming a level. Hiring clients' PPE matrices are usually the documents that name ANSI levels — and answering their prequalification questionnaires accurately means knowing which level your crews actually wear.