Hearing Conservation Program Requirements

OSHA states in 1910.95 that whenever employee noise exposures are equal to or exceed the defined action level, the employer must administer a continuing, effective hearing conservation program. The action level is defined as exposure to an 8-hour Time Weighted Average (TWA) sound level of 85 dBs measured on the A scale, or equivalent to a workday dose of 50%.

Also, when daily noise exposure consists of two or more periods of noise exposure at different levels, their combined effect should be considered, instead of the individual effect of each.

Exposure to impulse or impact noise should not exceed 140 dB peak sound pressure level.

Your supervisor or a specialist at your site will help you understand more about permissible noise exposure levels.

An employer must first evaluate and determine noise exposure levels in the workplace. A walkaround survey is performed to check for noise exposures and determine if additional monitoring is necessary.

Along with observing worker's subjective responses to noise (which can indicate noise problems), special monitoring equipment, such as a device called a dosimeter, is used to conduct a noise survey. A workshift sampling for noise is performed based on the findings of the walkaround survey.

Based on the data collected during this process, the employer decides if the action level and PELs defined in 1910.95 are exceed (i.e. there is hazardous noise in the workplace), and if so what must be done to protect employees from exposure to that noise.

In addition to establishing the action level and PELs for hazardous noise, 1910.95 also outlines requirements for engineering and administrative controls, and a hearing conservation program.

An effective hearing conversation program can prevent hearing loss and reduce the incidence of stress-related disease, as well as improve employee morale and a general feeling of well-being. It can also help increase production and quality efforts.

OSHA outlines the hearing conservation program requirements, including:

• Monitoring
• Audiometric testing
• Hearing protection devices
• Employee training
• Recordkeeping

To learn more about Hearing Protection visit our Hearing Protection Online Training web page.