WISHA Hearing Loss Prevention Program?

So going about writing rough drafts of all the documents required for WISHA. The thing that's got me stumped is WAC296-817, Hearing Loss Prevention. This chapter has me scratching my head about a couple things.





I've only worked in one shop that actually had something like this(the rest played the dumb card). As an employee all I had to do was walk into the blacked out, free candy van for a few minutes.

If this is a Washington State-specific program, I'd contact these folks: http://www.lni.wa.gov/Safety/Topics/AToZ/NoiseHearing/default.asp (also 800-423-7233). They should be able to give you specifics on meeting the standards.

I've been wearing over the ear muffs for more than twenty five years, really glad I started using them. Hearing's not what it was when I was a kid, but still a lot better than if I'd gone nekkid. Not sure how much it'll help the generation that's grown up with ear buds from birth, blasting their music at audible-from-the-next-room levels...

As much as its good to wear hearing protection in noisy shop environment, make the plugs/muffs and such available and what not(I like to think people should be able to figure out when they need them, but that's probably just crazy of me) thing is I know so many people who are deaf and worked in offices and zero industrial noise lines of work their whole life and still needed hearing aids in their 50's and 60's, I don't think there's any such thing as hearing loss prevention, people just get old and deaf and blind sooner or later.

You can get decent decibel testers for quite cheap, I got one. Although some noises can be low db and still super annoying and ear plug worthy.

Getting to the point where you have to get people tested, as if their developing deafness condition was entirely your fault as the employer, that gets a bit overly ridiculous.

Milland said:

If this is a Washington State-specific program, I'd contact these folks: http://www.lni.wa.gov/Safety/Topics/AToZ/NoiseHearing/default.asp (also 800-423-7233). They should be able to give you specifics on meeting the standards.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I might have to hit up L&I for some more info. There seems to be no exceptions to it either, which is odd since very few places don't seem to implement it(probably because it's expensive) and I've never heard of anyone getting busted on it.

Also kinda bizarre that it requires a bunch of calculus homework to even complete the damn thing.

"Getting to the point where you have to get people tested, as if their developing deafness condition was entirely your fault as the employer, that gets a bit overly ridiculous."

Oh please!!! How will you know if hearing loss occurred on your dime or at all if you don't know what their hearing was when they started? Testing is required.