If you can't hear ambient noise it's an issue. Safety violation.
My take: If it's a loud area, then you need hearing protection. Note that most earbuds don't isolate that much, as such if you're even moderately close to the osha hearing protection levels then you can exceed them by permitting earbud use. Hearing outside noise is not nearly as important here as ensuring that you don't exceed dB levels. In quieter areas, then you have the need to hear ambient noise. Depending on the area and whether you feel that being aware of the direction of the noise is important, having a one earbud policy is often OK. Or you can demand use of something like: https://amp.earplugstore.com/saf-t-ear-bluetooth-dual-safety-earbuds.html >From an enforcement perspective, a no earbud at all policy is easiest. On Fri, May 12, 2023, 1:00 PM Chuck McCown via AF <af@af.afmug.com> wrote: > I warned an employee wearing noise cancelling earphones that they were a > safety hazard yesterday. Today I noticed he had them on again, I pointed > to his ear. He went off on me, complaining that everyone else had > earbuds. I told him that many times I started talking to him and he either > acted like he was not hearing anything or he chose to ignore me. Yadda y > adda, yadda. He quit a few minutes later. Good worker but lousy > attitude. 43 years old and had worked about 20 different places. > > So I adopted an open ears policy. If I am the asshole, that is fine. I > am a boomer and proud of it. > > Whadya y’all think? > > > > *Should Employees Be Allowed to Wear Earbuds?* > ------------------------------ > > > > Currently, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) does > not have guidelines on earbud use in the workplace. However, OSHA has > issued recommendations regarding earbud use while on the job. Of course, > wearing earbuds in some work environments poses more of a threat than in > others. > > Earbud Dangers > > The dangers of wearing earbuds while on the job are similar to > non-employment use of these devices. People wearing earbuds simply cannot > hear emergency signals, but it goes beyond that. Overall, earbuds may pose > a safety hazard because the employee is less cognizant of their > surroundings and is not paying attention to their safety. > > No Earbuds Allowed > > OSHA urges employers to forbidTop of Form > > Bottom of Form > > the use of earbuds when workers are operating any sort of heavy equipment. > Anyone working on a manufacturing or construction site where heavy > equipment is used should not have earbuds, headphones, or similar devices > on their heads. For example, even if the forklift operator is not wearing > earbuds, a fellow employee in the vicinity using these devices could end up > getting hit if they cannot hear the machine. Along with earbuds, the same > warnings hold true for smartphones. Manufacturing machinery such as > milling machines emit noises that indicate problem conditions or unsafe > conditions. Operators of machines need to be able to hear what is going > on with the machine. > > Other Earbud Risks > > In most manufacturing industries, various energy-related hazards exist. > These may include chemical, electrical, or fire hazards. Failure to hear a > warning device due to earbud use not only puts that employee at risk if > they cannot hear warnings from coworkers but may be at risk as earbuds also > affect evacuations or the realization that equipment is not functioning > properly. For maximum safety, no employee in a manufacturing setting should > wear earbuds, even if they are not in an area of heavy equipment use. That > includes those working in warehouses. Earbuds are never a substitute for > any type of hearing protection on the job. > > -- > AF mailing list > AF@af.afmug.com > http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com >
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