Many steps go into building your company’s hearing conservation program. Below, we have given a brief overview of each step and how to approach them. For more information, consider reading this post from Work Safe Alberta that outlines the requirements in more detail.
Many companies ask, what is a hearing conservation program, and we are here to not only help with the answer but to provide solutions to get you on the right track.
The Steps to Building a Hearing Conservation Program
Educating Workers
The first step in your hearing conservation program is educating your workers. As an employer, you must ensure that your employees understand the dangers of excessive noise exposure, how to tell they are being exposed to loud noises, and what they can do to protect themselves from hearing loss.
Measuring Sound Levels
Next, you must measure the sound levels in your workplace. To do this, a suitable individual, with sufficient training, must go through all worksites on your property and assess the level of noise. This involves using a properly calibrated, sufficiently sensitive audiometer per the requirements of CSA Standard Z107.56-06 Procedures for the Measurement of Occupational Noise Exposure. Typically, you begin with the areas where you must raise your voice to be heard and understood.
Learn more – What is an Audiogram?
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Posting Signage
After you identify the areas that require hearing protection, you must post signage declaring them as such. This signage must be placed at all entrances to the loud areas, as is suitably possible.
Controlling Noise Exposure
Once you post signage for all employees and contractors, the next step is controlling the noise exposure of workers who must work in these loud locations. In some cases, this means limiting their time in the area, but it can also mean looking for quieter equipment or making hearing protection available.
Conducting Audiometric Tests
To track the level of hearing loss (If any) of your workers, you must conduct annual audiometric testing for all exposed workers. You must do this testing with trained, qualified and suitable testing equipment and technicians. The best hearing conservation programs hire outside audiometry testing companies to perform this task.
Making Hearing Protection Available
Finally, you are almost ready to work in the loudest areas of your premises again. However, before that, you must find and make available hearing protection that effectively diminishes the worker’s exposure. This may take the form of muffs, plugs or even custom hearing protection.
Hearing Protection Fit Testing
One of the services that we offer is to test the efficacy of the hearing protection that businesses provide to their employees.
- First – we look at the actual hearing protection itself and we measure the sound protection that it offers, either disposable earplugs, custom earplugs or full cover earmuffs.
- Second – we look at the environment and do an audiometric test to see what the protection requirements would be in that workplace. Each workplace has different requirements and we want to make sure the protection provided matched the protection needed.
Reviewing the Program Annually/ Monitoring Sound Levels
Now that you have a hearing conservation program that meets the standards and requirements of Alberta Occupational Health & Safety, there is only one step left. An annual review of said program. This is your opportunity to analyze and change any parts of your program that are ineffective. Remember, if your processes change, you must also reevaluate all affected policies and procedures.
Why the Right Hearing Protection Devices Matter
A hearing conservation program is only effective when the right steps are supported by the right hearing protection devices. Even if your business has completed noise monitoring, posted signage, conducted audiometric testing, and reviewed noise levels, workers may still be at risk if the protection devices they use do not match the actual noise exposure in the workplace.
This is why effective hearing conservation programs should look beyond basic compliance and focus on real-world worker safety. A successful hearing conservation program should consider the type of noise, the length of exposure, the comfort of the hearing protectors, and whether employees are wearing the devices correctly. In high-noise environments, the wrong fit or the wrong level of protection can still leave workers vulnerable to noise induced hearing loss, occupational hearing loss, or permanent hearing damage.
Hearing protectors may include disposable earplugs, custom-moulded earplugs, earmuffs, or other hearing protection devices depending on the work environment. These protection devices are an important part of personal protective equipment, but they should not be the only control in place. Whenever possible, companies should also consider engineering and administrative controls, such as quieter equipment, adjusted schedules, barriers, rotation plans, or changes to work procedures.
The goal of conservation programs is not just to provide hearing protection, but to create a safer workplace where employees understand the risks and have appropriate hearing protection for the job they are doing. When noise levels are measured properly and hearing protection devices are selected carefully, businesses can better support workplace safety, reduce long-term hearing loss risk, and build effective hearing conservation programs that protect workers over time.
FAQ
What should be included in a successful hearing conservation program?
A successful hearing conservation program should include worker education, workplace noise testing, sound level meters, audiometric testing, record keeping, program evaluation, and clear steps for choosing hearing protectors. These steps help employers understand workplace noise levels, identify employees who are regularly exposed to harmful noise levels, and reduce the risk of occupational hearing loss, permanent hearing loss, and damage to remaining hearing.
Effective hearing conservation should also include noise control, engineering controls, administrative controls, and appropriate hearing protectors that fit the ear canal properly. When a hearing conservation program is built around real workplace noise, worker health, and workplace safety, it is easier to protect workers and reduce long-term harm from occupational noise exposure.
It should also review whether employees are exposed to high noise levels on a daily basis, whether the action level has been reached, and whether higher levels of protection are needed in certain work areas. This helps employers identify areas where noise levels may change throughout the day and where additional hearing conservation steps may be required.
A strong program may include a full range of hearing conservation measures, including fit testing, different types of protective equipment, communication needs, and practical ways to reduce noise levels before relying only on earplugs or earmuffs. When hearing protectors are maintained properly and matched to the sound level in the workplace, they can help prevent hearing loss, support worker safety, and improve worker productivity in high noise environments.
Rocky Mountain Mobile Hearing Testing is your locally owned and operated Calgary business. We are committed to providing mobile hearing testing services and other safety tests, to numerous industries and companies in Western Canada. Our services are part of the WorkSafeBC Provider Network, while our sound booths are approved by the CSA. We offer audiometry testing, mask fit testing, custom earplugs, noise measurements, help with implementing a hearing conservation program, and spirometry testing. If you want to improve your workplace, leave it in the hands of our team. Contact us today on (403) 399-4775.