Hearing protection device use in occupational environments: employee, supervisor, and safety manager perspectives

Objective The current study assessed hearing conservation beliefs and related self-reported behaviors in occupational and recreational environments from employees who wear hearing protection devices (HPDs) at work, supervisors of employees required to wear HPDs, and hearing conservation program (HCP) managers. Methods Participants completed an on-line survey regarding hearing conservation beliefs, experience with HPDs, noise exposure, and demographic information. Employees reported their own behavior. Supervisors and HCP managers reported their perception of employee behavior. Descriptive and inferential statistics are reported for the three participant groups. Results Unmet audibility needs during the use of HPDs in the workplace were commonly reported. There was both qualitative and quantitative agreement between employee report of unmet audibility needs and supervisor and HCP manager perceptions of employee audibility needs. Loosening or removing HPDs to improve audibility of communication sounds, equipment sounds, alarms, and other important workplace sounds was commonly reported. Discussion Audibility of important work-related sounds is a concern for employees who are required to wear HPDs in the workplace, supervisors of employees who are required to wear HPDs in the workplace, and HCP managers.