Hearing Loss in the Workplace

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), almost 22 million Americans are exposed to hazardous noise levels at work. Hearing loss is the most common workplace injury. Approximately $242 million is spent yearly on worker’s compensation from hearing loss.

Working with hearing loss can sometimes be a challenge for employee and employers alike. Just over 13 million working Americans have some degree of hearing loss. Those with hearing loss tend to experience more problems emotionally and socially in the workplace environment. The emotional effects are caused by the difficulty of functioning in social situations commonly found at work. For many affected with hearing loss, this is a never ending vicious circle.

Compensation can be awarded as a result of hearing loss. Employees must be able to show that their hearing loss was work related. If you work in a noisy environment, employers will often times require employees to take a hearing test before starting. That way, they can tell if an employee suffered from previous hearing loss.

OSHA sets employee noise exposure limits at 90dBA for 8 hours a day and limits 100dBA to only 2 hours a day. Long term exposure to high levels of noise can cause permanent tinnitus or hearing loss. If you believe that your hearing loss is work related, contact one of our workers’ compensation attorneys to evaluate your claim.