Top Tips For Employers To Protect Their Employees From Hearing Damage

One of the most frequent employee complaints is a loss of hearing caused by noise pollution at work

. The Control of Noise at Work Regulations (2005) was an attempt by the government to reduce occupational noise hazards. The Regulations direct employers on how to manage noise in the workplace.

Unfortunately the Regulations are not adhered to as strongly as they should be. It is often the case that an employer does not appreciate how important it is to do a workplace assessment until it is too late and they are facing an accident at work claim.

This article contains some top tips on how to adhere to the Regulations and what measures you could introduce to ensure that you are legally compliant and able to avoid expensive work accident claims:

1. Know your levels - many employers are unaware of what level of noise evokes the statutory requirements for protective equipment. Essentially noise is measured in decibels written dB and it is either measured as an average (dB(A)) or by impact noise i.e. one-off explosive amounts of noise (dB(C)). Under the regulations if the average level of noise (measured over the period of one week) is between 80-85 dB(A) and if there is one-off impact noise measuring 135-137 dB(C) you should be providing protective equipment for employees and evoking other safety checks. As well as this, average noise in the workplace should not exceed 87 dB and peak noise should not exceed 140 dB.

2. Do a risk assessment of the working environment - completing risk assessments regularly should mean that you maintain your working environment at levels lower than those stated in the regulations. It also means that if your employees are exposed to higher levels of noise you can do something about it rather than being open to an employment law claim. Use the risk assessment to identify areas in which there are particular high noise levels and which employees have the most exposure. Record the findings of your assessment and use this as a basis for designing a schedule of improvements. You can then refer to this record when you do a reassessment in the future.

3. Make changes to reduce noise - prevention is always better than finding a cure, so bare this in mind when purchasing new machinery. Check the noise levels it produces and opt for the quieter models. Talk to the manufacturer about installing the machinery in such a way which enables it to be more noise friendly. Ask them what maintenance you can do to ensure that the noise levels do not increase over time. For current machinery look into noise reducing measures such as inserting absorption pads to reduce machine vibrations (also know as 'damping') or check a machine is mounted properly off the floor. If possible raise noise barriers between areas to prevent the noise from travelling across the workplace. An easy change to make is to separate a quiet area away from the machinery so that employees can use for 'noise breaks’. Where possible try to rotate employees around so that not one person is consistently subjected to high noise levels.

4. Purchase good quality ear protectors - a good quality ear protector should aim to get high noise levels down to below 85 dB at the ear. When buying ear protectors ensure that the design will fit around any other safety kit employees may have to wear i.e. helmets. Bare in mind that some employees may not want to share ear protectors on hygiene grounds, so make sure you order enough to cover all of your employees. If you have taken the time to buy protective equipment then make sure that your employees are wearing it whilst at work. If you make it a rule that employees must wear the equipment and they do not, then this will allow you to argue contributory negligence on their behalf. If you are going to enforce wearing the protective equipment as a rule, then you should back this up with consequences for non-compliance.

by: Tim Bishop

POST COMMENT

Best Tips For Overcoming Depression Top 10 Cleaning Tips Commodity tips Binaural Beats Mp3 - Top 10 Positive Effects Confidence Building Tips Cheap Engagement Rings - Save Money with these Great Tips Several Basic Tips On Buying Cheap All Inclusive Holidays Meditation Tips For Starters Does Ibs Cause Anxiety? 8 Tips For Anxiety Relief Tips to buy best vintage engagement rings Uninstall Tenebril Spyware Scanner Completely - How to Remove Tenebril Spyware Scanner Easy Tips Uninstall VirusChief Completely - How to Remove VirusChief Easy Tips Crystal Lamps Selecting Tips