The Health and Safety Executive has launched a campaign to reduce hearing loss and hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) on construction sites.
Around 15,000 workers develop hearing problems caused or made worse by work every year, with an estimated one in five workers exposed to harmful levels of noise at work.
Prolonged or excessive exposure to noise can cause permanent hearing loss and tinnitus. Hand-arm vibration, meanwhile, can lead to HAVS and carpal tunnel syndrome, causing numbness, tingling, pain and reduced grip strength.
HSE’s campaign is proposing a three-step approach for contractors to address the issue:
- Assess – Identify who may be exposed to noise and vibration, understand the risks and carry out suitable and sufficient risk assessments.
- Control – Reduce exposure at source by choosing quieter or lower-vibration equipment, maintaining tools and machinery, introducing engineering controls and adopting safer ways of working.
- Protect – Where risks remain, provide suitable hearing protection, arrange health surveillance where required, and give workers the information, instruction and training they need to protect themselves.
The HSE said the campaign “would provide practical tools, guidance and resources to help employers assess workplace risks, put effective controls in place and prevent life-changing occupational ill health”. It is also encouraging contractors to sign a HAVS Risk Reduction Pledge.
HSE principal specialist inspector (noise and vibration) Chris Steel said: “Noise and vibration-related ill health is preventable, but the consequences can last a lifetime. Workers may not realise they’re being harmed until their hearing is affected, or they begin to experience pain, numbness or tingling in their hands and arms.
“Employers shouldn’t wait for symptoms to appear. They need to identify where workers are at risk, reduce exposure and make sure the right controls are in place.”
