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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
Decades of loud rock concerts and other noisy pastimes have degraded baby boomers' hearing, with nearly 40% of them experiencing some hearing loss.
iPods and cell phones could be doing the same for Gen Xers and Millennials, a speaker recently told the American Society of Safety Engineers' annual conference.
With the potential for hearing loss to plague future generations there is greater need for workplace hearing conservation programs, said Louise Vallee, a Chubb & Son vp and executive research and development specialist for the Chubb's loss control unit.
Approximately 30 million American employees are exposed to excessive workplace noise, according to OSHA.
Particularly in industrial settings and construction, employers need to be aware of noise-hazard regulations and monitor to assure compliance. Potential work comp benefit costs also make it imperative that employers protect employees from noise hazards, states a Chubb press release on Mr. Vallee's presentation.
“The rule of thumb is that if the environment requires somebody to ‘speak up' in order to be heard, there is probably a need to conduct noise monitoring to ensure compliance with OSHA standards,” Mr. Vallee said.
To reduce hearing loss and work comp claims Mr. Vallee suggested that businesses:
-Conduct baseline audiogram hearing tests for new employees to detect pre-existing hearing loss;
-Implement annual hearing tests for employees exposed to noise exceeding the OHSA action levels;
- Use annual employee hearing conservation training as an opportunity to educate employees about potential risks associated with recreational noise;
- When purchasing new equipment, carefully evaluate noise control features; and
- Provide a variety of hearing protection devices and train employees on proper fit.
In other news, Florida's chief financial officer recently increased an assessment employers pay into a work comp trust fund from 0.25% of premiums to 0.8% to offset money lawmakers have transferred from the work comp fund to bolster the state's general revenue.