Whether you already have employees with hearing loss or are employing someone who is deaf, it’s important to know how best to support anyone with deafness or hearing issues.
As an employer you have a legal obligation to support any employees with hearing loss.
The Equality Act 2010 states that employers must make reasonable adjustments for people with hearing loss.
Here are some simple adjustments you can make:
✅ Improve the overall acoustics of your working area by adding soft furnishings, rubber caps on chair legs, etc. This will help to keep background noise and interference to a minimum.
✅ An employee with hearing loss should have a workstation where they can see the rest of the room, so that they can be involved in group discussions, etc.
✅ Remember that a hearing aid doesn’t just make speech louder – it makes everything louder. Bear in mind that this can make a working day very stressful and draining.
✅ Ensure the layout of communal spaces and meetings rooms allows for everyone to be seen, with good lighting. You could look into installing a hearing loop which helps hearing aid users to understand speech over background noise.
✅ Be mindful when speaking to someone with deafness or hearing loss, that they may need to be able to see your lips. Speak clearly but remember that their intelligence is not affected by an inability to hear well.
✅ Consider flexible working – they may need to work somewhere they can relax and get on with their work without the background noise of your working environment.
Did you know that a fifth of tradespeople suffer hearing problems because of their work?
If your business is in a factory/construction setting your employees may suffer hearing loss over time. Be sure to provide ear defenders and remind them to go for regular hearing checks, or provide these hearing tests via an Occupational Health Provider which Meraki HR can help you with.
If you’d like to talk about any of our employees who are deaf or how have hearing issues, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
