Health Care

Turn It Down: 5 Ways Workplace Noise Affects Emotional Health

Many Aussie industries and their professionals suffer from excessive noise. From construction to engineering, manufacturing to railworks and more, the constant buzz of a circular saw or pound of a jackhammer can be detrimental to the health of many Aussie workers.

And it’s not just the ears that take a beating from excessive sound: noise pollution can cause a range of physical and emotional health problems. It’s for this very reason that Australia has first class analysis authorities to ensure that companies are not exceeding the recommended level of decibels.

Here, we are going to talk about how excessive sound can negative impact both physical and emotional health, and why this makes comprehensive noise testing an imperative for many Aussie companies:

  1. It increases stress levels

Picture this: you have to work a jackhammer all day for a company that doesn’t provide the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) to do the job safely. You’re going to be pretty stressed, especially as that jackhammer gnaws away as the day goes on, leaving your brain totally hammered and your stress levels at all time highs.

Prolonged exposure to noise pollution is a key releaser of both adrenaline and cortisol (aka the stress hormone). Releasing either – or both – of these hormones can leave workers feeling absolutely knackered and completely stressed out.

  1. It impedes on worker focus

There is another reason why excessive sound is problematic for focus and it goes beyond making an already-dangerous workplace far more dangerous. When a worker is unable to focus they are unable to enjoy their work. Unfortunately, this leads to fatigue, irritability and, ultimately, a lack of job satisfaction.

Lack of job satisfaction can lead to an increased risk of mental health problems like anxiety and depression in workers. Sure, the idea for Aussie workers has always been to keep a stiff upper lip and cop what comes their way, but it’s 21st Century, and they should be able to work without excessive sound causing mental health problems.

  1. It threatens worker cohesion

Workers are obviously going to be more frustrated if they are exposed to constant excessive sound. Therefore, if you have two men manning a particular area that is subject to excessive decibels then it is highly likely they are going to get along a lot worse than if they had (at the minimum) the proper PPE to shield from the dangers and frustrations of excessive sound.

  1. It can lead to a desire for absenteeism

Because who wants to be subject to a wild number of decibels eight hours a day, five days a week? It’s simple: if you run an operation that is susceptible to excessive sound then you must ensure you do everything possible to reduce the impact that has on your workers.

If they start to find that the roar of the rock crusher is literally doing their head in then they are far more likely to take a day off just to rest said head. They might find that they enjoy being home far more than the crushing of rocks pounding their brains all day and this will lead to constant absenteeism.

  1. It can trigger pre-existing conditions

Just because your builder looks tough doesn’t mean they aren’t susceptible to excessive sound triggering a pre-existing condition. In fact, a quarter of Aussie construction workers have experienced mental health problems, and excessive sound can easily trigger these mental health problems.

So, it’s best to ensure your team is protected from this problem through proper noise testing and protective measures!

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