Take Precautions and Protect Your Hearing

When is the last time you thought about your hearing? When is the last time you had your hearing checked?

Did you know that exposure to excessive noise is the most common industry health hazard and is the most difficult to detect? Most of us don’t give our hearing a second thought because we all tend to take it for granted. Think about what it would be like if you could not hear and how that would impact your life.

All provinces have standards that are set to control the amount of noise exposure that workers can be exposed to. It is not just the decibel level that is a concern but the duration of exposure as well. If you are exposed to a noise level greater than 85 decibels (about the equivalent of sustained traffic noise) during an average eight-hour day, you could be at risk of permanently damaging your hearing. Continuous noise throughout a shift is more damaging than being exposed a few minutes at a time.

When you are on the job, it is your employer’s responsibility to ensure that they are providing you with the proper hearing protection and looking for ways to reduce your exposure to excessive noise. Where it is not possible to reduce excessive noise, employers can look at other methods of limiting your exposure, such as job rotation. Also, ensuring that employees have the correct hearing protection and that it is being utilized by the employees is a key to protecting your hearing.

The Canadian Standards Association rates hearing protection as meeting Class A, B, or C, depending on how much noise reduction the protection provides. Here is the recommended protection for eight hours of exposure:

·       Less that 90 decibels: Class C

·       90-95 decibels: Class B

·       96-105 decibels: Class A

·       Over 105 decibels: Class A earplug and Class B earmuff

 But all the hearing protection in the world will do you no good if you don’t wear it! It might be uncomfortable, too hot, or a pain to remember to put it on. “I won’t be exposed to the noise for too long so I will be fine.” Sound familiar? These are poor excuses for not wearing hearing protection. Think about the risk you are taking. Your hearing is too valuable to lose. Take precautions and protect yourself.

CLAC believes it is important for you to ensure you look after your health—that includes your hearing. Ensuring that you have proper hearing protection available that there is an adequate supply for you and your coworkers.

If you have questions regarding hearing protection you should speak with your health and safety representative or speak to your CLAC representative.