I just don't understand,” I heard the safety manager lament. “We offer our noise-exposed workers a variety of hearing protectors, and we monitor the workers to ensure compliance in wearing them. Yet we still had four employees this year with significant shifts in hearing.”
The problem became quite apparent when the safety manager produced samples of the earplugs offered on-site. The "variety" of earplugs touted by the safety manager consisted of two styles, both large foam earplugs from different manufacturers. Any workers with smaller ear canals at the facility – and there were many – would find it difficult to achieve good protection from the “variety” offered.