Noise at work can become a particular health and safety issue if it occurs frequently and at loud volumes. Chronic hearing conditions like tinnitus can develop over time, leaving you with permanent ringing in your ears, with sudden loud bursts of noise having the potential to damage hearing immediately. This could have wider health and social implications, particularly if you are no longer able to work as a result of hearing loss.
You spend a large portion of your life dedicated to your career, so it’s important that you take the necessary steps to ensure your continued hearing health while in the office, on-site or out on the road.
Dangerous Noise
Twenty percent of European workers across all industries are exposed to noise so loud that they need to raise their voice to talk to other people for at least half their working time, according to the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
Eighty-five decibels (dB) is considered to be the threshold between safe and dangerous noise, with sound pressure effectively doubling at 6dB intervals. As a general rule, if you have to raise your voice from two meters then noise will typically be above 85dB; if you have to raise your voice from one meter then the noise is typically louder than 90dB.
To put this in further context, the average alarm clock has a sound rating of 80db, with an MP3 player on full volume being around 115dB.
The maximum exposure time for an average noise level of 85db is eight hours, with the exposure time then halving every successive three dBs. That means that you can spend a maximum of 15 minutes per 24 hours at sound ratings of 100dB, and only 56 seconds at 112 dB. Any sound of 140dB is likely to cause immediate hearing damage.
Occupations At Risk
The level of noise in the workplace is largely dependent on your job role, with industrial and construction workers the most at risk, although hospitality staff, agricultural workers and airport staff are also vulnerable to hearing damage:
Occupation
dB
Nursery workers
85dB
Bottle plant worker
88db
Bar Staff and nightclub workers
89-115db
Motorcycle courier
90db
Waiters
102db
Factory and farm workers
105dB
Musician
110dB
Construction workers
120dB
Airport ground staff
140db
Other workers likely to be affected include miners, members of the armed forces, police officers, persons in elementary occupations, fishers, electricity, gas and water supply engineers and transport and communications staff.
While office work is generally less affected by noise, there may be circumstances which lead to increased noise exposure, particularly when you are in close proximity to other workers, like call centers, or workplaces which play loud music all day, like record stores.
The Law
Employers therefore have a legal duty to reduce noise exposure if it rises above dangerous levels, ensuring that noisy equipment is maintained and appropriate protective equipment is provided. However, don’t just rely on your employer to look after you, make sure you take steps to safeguard your own hearing.
Looking After Your Hearing At Work
If you are concerned that noise in your workplace is loud, ask your employer to perform a risk assessment, they are legally obliged to do so if noise is regarded as intrusive.
However, the following tips will help you to reduce your hearing risk at work:
If you work in noisy areas, take regular breaks, making sure that you retire somewhere quiet.
Approach your employer and ask if you can rotate working positions with other members of staff, this way you won’t be working on noisy tasks continuously.
If you spend long periods of time in noisy areas, or work with noisy equipment, earplugs should be worn. Industrial earplugs, which reduce sound ratings by up to 35dB, can be found at Allearplugs.com.
Make sure you keep your earplugs safe, ready for each shift; they should be worn all the time, no excuses.
In order to enjoy a long and fruitful career it is important that you take steps to safeguard your health; hearing loss can cause a real setback and should be protected against at all times.
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Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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