Employers
Are you meeting your legal obligations and effectively protecting your staff from Noise Induced Hearing Loss? Earplugtest has been developed not only to help individuals protect themselves against hearing loss but also for employers.
If you’re an employer, ask yourself:
- Are your staff properly protected against excessive noise?
- Do you want to avoid costly compensation claims brought by staff whose hearing has been damaged in the workplace? Noise Induced Hearing Loss claims against employers are increasing; prevent this from happening to you.
- Did you know Noise Induced Hearing Loss is linked to dementia and other serious medical conditions?
- How do you know the earplugs your staff are using are fit for purpose and provide adequate protection? Remember there are no UK or European earplug performance standards and manufacturers’ specifications are based on results gained in a laboratory from a small sample of test subjects.
- How do you know that your staff are fitting their earplugs correctly and effectively limiting their exposure to noise? The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimates only 60% of staff that use ear protection are actually protected against hearing loss.
- Does your company have a hearing conservation programme and if so, is it supported by robust statistical data that proves you’ve gone the extra mile to protect your staff? Earplugtest can provide you with this data.
- Are you meeting the legal responsibilities to effectively protect your staff from noise? Read about the legal responsibilities below.
Earplugtest is a quick, simple, and cost-effective way to protect your staff from the risk of hearing loss and related conditions, whilst reducing your risk of compensation claims from staff whose hearing has been damaged.
In addition, it enables you to:
- Significantly improve your company’s Health and Safety standards and compliance. Independently verify and monitor the quality of the earplugs provided to your staff.
- Set up an evidence-based earplug replacement policy and system.
- Help ensure your staff are correctly using and getting the most from their earplugs via training.
- Collect test data that proves you have taken robust steps in line with the legal obligation to “reduce the risk to as low a level as is reasonably practicable”.
Earplugtest is available to large employers on a licence basis, and through a company specific URL it can be configured specifically for your company and the earplugs your staff use. Statistical test data from your staff can be made available via a CSV file or integrated into your existing health management system through an API.
Employers’ Legal Responsibilities
Health and Safety at Work Act
The Health and Safety at Work Act obliges employers to protect their workers (and others) from getting hurt or ill through work via provision of appropriate protective clothing and equipment.
Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005
The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 states: “Any personal hearing protectors…shall be selected by the employer so as to eliminate the risk to hearing or to reduce the risk to as low a level as is reasonably practicable.”
PPE Regulation (EU) 2016/425
The PPE Regulation (EU) 2016/425 classifies harmful noise as a Category 3 (serious) risk which means employers are obliged to take steps to ensure their employees’ hearing health is not damaged by exposure to excessive noise.
Remember…
- Unfortunately in practice, many staff are not properly protected from hearing damage caused in the workplace even when using earplugs, with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimating only 60% of staff that use ear protection are protected.
- Earplugtest is the only scientifically validated online earplug test designed for staff working with noise and at risk of hearing loss.
- It is the only test that checks the real-world performance of any type of earplug, foam or custom-made, new or old (as opposed to laboratory tests that are based on just 16 people and then averaged).
- The earplug test can be completed in under 10 minutes from anywhere without any special equipment or expert knowledge needed.
- The test was developed by a European leader in hearing, acoustics, and noise who is registered with The Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and The Institute of Acoustics (IOA). He is also the IOA representative on the British Standards Institution (BSI) committee that develops British Standards for hearing protection, and also sits on the European Working Group for Hearing Protection. In addition, he is the co-author of the UK Hearing Conservation Association’s recently launched Hearing Protection Fit Testing guide.
- He is also a partner of the British Safety Industry Federation (BSiF) and invented the iPadbased hearing test used by Specsavers in 900+ of their stores.