Hearing Protection

Bootle, England — More than 75% of workers exposed to hazardous noise on the job lack essential knowledge about checking hearing protection for damage or reporting faulty equipment to their employers, a recent inspection campaign has revealed.

If you’re a safety professional looking to select hearing protection for workers, the same logic that applies to other personal protective equipment applies here: There’s no “one-size-fits-all” approach.

What are the most common missteps employers make with occupational hearing testing programs?

What are the different ways to measure noise exposure?

Washington — Citing technological advancements, a recent NIOSH policy update calls on employers to use “individual, quantitative fit testing” to assess the effectiveness of workers’ hearing protection devices.

New York — OSHA’s New York City Region has renewed its emphasis program on worker exposure to noise.

Washington — Construction workers exposed to noise on the job face a higher risk of hearing loss than noise-exposed workers in all other industries do, results of a recent NIOSH study show.

Cincinnati — Utility workers have the highest occurrence of hearing loss among noise-exposed workers in all industries, results of a recent NIOSH study show.

Should I fit-test the hearing protection my workers use?

How can I best protect my workers from noise-induced hearing loss?