Legal requirements related to noise in Singapore
- Apr 3, 2016
- 4 min read
The Workplace Safety and Health (Medical Examinations) Regulations applies to all workplaces where workers are employed in any occupation (referred to as hazardous occupation) involving exposure to excessive noise.
As per Workplace Safety & Health (Risk Management) Regulations it is the duty of the employer of every workplace to conduct a risk assessment in relation to the safety and health risks posed to any person who may be affected by his undertaking in the workplace. Environmental monitoring would be part of the quantitative risk assessment for noise exposure.
The Workplace Safety and Health (Noise) Regulations 2011 Regulations is applicable to all workplaces. The occupier and responsible person (employer or principal) has the duty to take reasonably practicable measures to reduce or control noise so that workers are not exposed to excessive noise, i.e., noise levels above the Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs) as specified in the Regulations. As per the below table.
Where there are more than 50 persons exposed to excessive noise in the workplace, a competent person is to be appointed to advise the occupier on noise control measures. It is the duty of the occupier to implement the noise control measures recommended.
Where there are 10 or more persons exposed to excessive noise in the workplace, noise monitoring is to be conducted at least once every three years. Results are to be submitted by the occupier to the Commissioner within 30 days. Results are to be kept for at least 10 years.
The responsible person has the duty to provide hearing protectors to persons exposed to excessive noise and to institute a training programme within 3 months for new workers, and subsequently, once every 12 months.
Workplace Safety and Health (Incident Reporting) Regulations 2006
Duty to report occupational disease
Where an employee suffers an occupational disease (Noise induced Deafness) as specified in the Second Schedule to the Act at a workplace, and the employer of that employee receives a written statement prepared by a registered medical practitioner diagnosing the occupational disease, the employer shall, not later than 10 days after receipt of the written diagnosis, submit a report to the Commissioner.
Any registered medical practitioner who diagnoses any employee with an occupational disease specified in the Second Schedule to the Act shall, not later than 10 days after the diagnosis, submit a report to the Commissioner.
Work Injury Compensation Act
The Commissioner and any investigation officer shall, for the purposes of the execution of this Act, have power to assess the levels of noise in any workplace and the exposure levels of persons at work therein
GATOID
This guide serves as a tool for the assessment of neurological as well as the assessment of the hearing, functions.
MOM Guidelines on Hearing Conservation Programme
The basic elements of a HCP are:
Identifying the noise hazard and evaluating the risk involved;
Implementing noise control measures, such as engineering controls to minimize the risk;
Providing suitable hearing protectors and ensuring the proper use of the hearing protectors by persons exposed to excessive noise;
Training and educating persons involved in the HCP to raise their awareness of noise hazard and prevention of NID;
Conducting annual audiometric examinations to monitor the effectiveness of the HCP in preventing NID, and detecting early hearing impairment;
Keeping records of the measures taken to protect employees from noise hazard; and
Evaluating the HCP to determine its effectiveness and identifying areas for improvements
A HCP is required when any person in the workplace is exposed to excessive noise, which is defined as an equivalent sound pressure level of 85 dB(A) or more over an eight-hour workday.
In later part in our posts let us discuss further in detail about each element
Technical Advisory on Work in Noisy Environment
Number of NID cases for the year 2006 is 535 scoring 81.4% of the reportable occupational disease.
Noise Induced Deafness Prevention Programme
The NID Prevention Programme (NIDPP) aims to reduce the incidence of Noise-induced Deafness (NID).
The target of this programme includes workplaces with noise hazards in the manufacturing, Shipbuilding / ship-repairing and construction sector, through a series of outreach and enforcement activities.
Key elements of the in-plant HCP include noise monitoring, noise control, hearing protection, audiometric examinations and health education.
Initiatives under this programme include:
Strengthening legislative requirements
Identifying noisy workplaces for surveillance and control
Managing noise hazards at workplaces through the implementation of in-plant Hearing Conservation Programme (HCP)
- Raising awareness and building capability in noise hazard management
In addition to targeted enforcement, the other components of the programme will consist of:
Developing and prescribing appropriate standards
Reviewing current legislative requirements on noise management to take into account international best practices.
Providing compliance assistance
Providing technical assistance in the form of guidelines and checklists to employers in developing and implementing an effective Hearing Conservation Programme (HCP) to manage noise hazards. The programme would involve identifying noise hazards through noise monitoring, instituting appropriate noise control measures, raising awareness through health education, providing for hearing protectors and detecting early hearing loss through medical examinations.
Deepening capabilities to monitor and control hazards
Reviewing and expanding the current coverage of workplaces and workers under monitoring.
Strengthening the capabilities of noise monitoring and/or noise control officers to identify noisy work processes and mitigate noise hazards.
Targeting occupiers and employers through seminars and dissemination of collaterals to raise awareness of workplace noise hazards and their prevention.
Educating and engaging employees
Raising awareness of the hazards of noise and the preventive measures through WSH newsletters and other outreach activities such as dormitory road shows.
SS 549: 2009 Code of Practice for Selection, Use, Care and Maintenance of Hearing protectors
As this is code of practice none of its part shall be disclosed without prior written approval from the authority.
International or national standards on audiometric testing, audiometer calibration and testing environment
As these standards are of international copyright none of them shall be reproduced without prior written approval from the concerned administrators.
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