The Department of Defence is to help fund a £150,000 study into deafness among young workers. The Insurance Corporation of Ireland and the two main employer bodies, the Irish Business and Employers' Confederation, and the Construction Industry Federation, are also providing funds. This indicates mounting concern over employer liability in the wake of deafness claims from soldiers.
The IDA (Ireland), the Health and Safety Authority and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions are also supporting the initiative, although they are not providing funding. The study was first proposed 18 months ago, when research by a postgraduate student at University College, Dublin, suggested that up to 50 per cent of workers under 30 years of age have hearing levels below those normal for their age group. The new study is to be carried out by a multi-disciplinary team based in UCD.
The project leader, Mr Ray Kinsella, says the Centre for Insurance Studies at UCD is "putting together the first national survey of environmentally induced hearing damage". It will have access to leading experts in the medical and statistical area. Medical experts have been seeking a survey in this area for many years, according to Mr Kinsella. His centre sought funding after a postgraduate student, Mr John Cass, produced data suggesting that hearing has deteriorated seriously among younger members of the work-force.
Mr Cass, who is a professional audiologist, looked at data covering 1,001 workers in a variety of employments where there was high compliance with safety regulations, including ear protection. He found that between 40 per cent and 50 per cent of workers aged under 30 had poorer hearing than was normal for their age.
Hearing among older age groups was more in line with what might be expected. In the 35 to 40 age group hearing levels were actually better than for many in the younger age groups. Mr Cass says the findings suggest there is a problem, but a more detailed survey is needed to establish its extent. He believes the noisier environment in which we all live is affecting hearing.
The head of IBEC's occupational health and safety services, Mr Tony Briscoe, says the organisation has been providing members with advice on noise assessment for some time.
Once noise levels reach 85 to 90 decibels, the situation should be rigorously monitored. (This level of noise can be generated by heavy street traffic.)
People exposed to noise levels of 90 decibels regularly for eight hours a day, 40 hours a week, are likely to suffer hearing loss, Mr Briscoe warns.
However, the ears can recover from short-term damage, such as the level of noise generated by discos, which is around 110 decibels. Regular daily exposure to that level of noise should not exceed seven or eight minutes, Mr Briscoe says. IBEC advises members to include audiometric testing in pre-employment medicals. Many young people who seem to be suffering hearing damage may be able to function normally at work, and may not even know they are affected. However, Mr Cass's study suggests their hearing will deteriorate much more rapidly as they grow older than would otherwise be the case.
This has enormous implications for their employment prospects and for society generally, not least in terms of health and social welfare costs. The new study will test 3,000 people in the 18 to 35 age group. Mr Kinsella says it is being conducted with complete independence from the funding agencies and will provide an informed basis for public policy-making in the future.