OSHA hearing conservation criterion for implementing a program?

• A. 85 dBA TWA or dose-based criterion
• B. 80 dBA TWA
• C. 90 dBA Leq
• D. 70 dBA TWA

Answer: (A)

The trigger for implementing a hearing conservation program is that employee noise exposure reaches a defined action level, specifically 85 dBA averaged over an 8-hour workday, or this can be determined through a dose-based assessment that combines all noise exposures across tasks to see if the daily dose hits the threshold. This action level is set because it marks where the risk to hearing becomes significant enough to justify formal controls, monitoring, and training. The dose-based criterion is particularly useful in environments with multiple tasks producing different noise levels; it tallies how much of the workday is spent at various levels to produce a single daily dose, and once that dose meets or exceeds the limit, the program must be in place.

Why the other options aren’t the trigger: 80 dBA TWA is below the action level, so it does not automatically require a program; 90 dBA Leq corresponds to the permissible exposure limit rather than the program trigger; and 70 dBA is well below the threshold.