Hearing Conservation Training Requirements

Hearing conservation for the hearing impaired worker.

Hearing conservation training requirements.

This publication summarizes the required component of osha s hearing conservation program for general industry. According to the standards a hearing conservation program is required whenever employee noise exposures equal or exceed an 8 hour time weighted average sound level twa of 85 decibels measured on the a scale slow response or equivalently a dose. This instruction describes requirements for establishing a hearing conservation program hcp for all osha personnel covered by the agency s medical examination program instruction per 04 00 003. The components of this hcp include noise monitoring audiometric testing hearing protection training and recordkeeping.

The training program shall be repeated annually for each employee included in the hearing conservation program. Osha safety and health information bulletin shib december 27 2005. Hearing conservation programs require employers to measure noise levels provide free annual hearing exams and free hearing protection provide training and conduct evaluations of the adequacy of the hearing protectors in use unless changes to tools equipment and schedules are made so that they are less noisy and worker exposure to noise is. Employee training is one of the most important components of an occupational hearing conservation program hcp.

Covers monitoring audiometric testing hearing protectors training and recordkeeping requirements. From hearing impairment even if they are subject to such noise exposures over their entire working lifetimes. Even a well designed hcp can fall short of the goal of preventing noise induced hearing loss nihl if the employees don t know how excessive noise exposure can harm them or haven t learned the behaviors that are necessary to reduce their risk. Manual 6260 51 99 2 navy medical department hearing conservation program procedures september 2008 n nmcphc technical manual 6290 91 2 rev b industrial hygiene.

When a hearing conservation program is required there is no quick answer to this question. Information provided in the training program shall be updated to be consistent with changes in protective equipment and work processes.