How do I manage noise levels at work?
It takes being exposed to roughly 85 dbA for 8 hours a day to do damage to a person’s hearing.
However, noise well below occupational exposure levels can still be a public nuisance. A noise that can be heard above the usual background noise levels would be considered a nuisance. For example, someone screaming in a relatively loud office or someone talking in a silent room. Under general health and safety law, these issues should certainly be investigated by the workplace.
Whenever you have a noise problem there are several potential solutions:
- A form of noise insulation.
- Redesign the noisy area to incorporate sound absorbing surfaces.
- Wearing some sort of noise cancelling earpieces.
- Moving to a different work area.
Online Noise Awareness Training
Here at iHasco, we offer an Online Noise Awareness Training course that looks at what can be done to recognise and reduce exposure to noise at work.
With more than 11 million people in the UK suffering from forms of hearing loss and over 900,000 people being profoundly or severely deaf, we believe people working in noisy environments should know who’s at risk, what those risks are, and how to reduce them.
The course is CPD accredited & IOSH approved and only takes around 25 minutes to complete. Upon completion of the course, you will be provided with a printable certificate to show that you’re working towards compliance with current legislation.
