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# JAN’S ACCOMMODATION FACT SHEET SERIES

**Job Accommodations for People**

**with Hearing Loss**

There are approximately 28 million Americans who are deaf or hard of hearing.  According to the National Association of the Deaf, the term “deaf” refers to individuals who are not able to hear well enough to rely on hearing as a means for processing information.  The term “hard of hearing” refers to individuals who have some hearing loss but are able to use hearing to communicate.  This publication summarizes accommodations for individuals with various types of hearing loss.

The following is a quick overview of some of the job accommodations that might be useful for people with hearing loss. For a more in depth discussion, access JAN's publications at http://askjan.org/media/atoz.htm.  To discuss an accommodation situation with a consultant, contact JAN directly.

**Communicating One on One:**

· Use written notes

· Use computer technology, i.e., e-mail and instant messaging

· Provide an assistive listening device (ALD)

· Provide an interpreter

· Provide basic sign language training

· Provide an augmentative communication device

· Provide a TTY 

**Communicating in Groups, Meetings, or Training:**

· Provide an assistive listening device (ALD)

· Provide communication access real-time translation (CART)

· Provide computer-assisted note taking

· Address environmental factors, i.e., background noise, lighting, and positioning  

· Provide an interpreter

· Use Web-based meeting software or video conferencing

· Provide standard note taking or other text information

· Allow tape recording of meetings

· Provide speech recognition software

**Communicating over the Telephone:**

· Provide amplification

· Adjust sound frequency to improve clarity

· Provide a headset designed for people who wear hearing aids

· Reduce background noise

· Provide a TTY

· Provide speech recognition

**Communicating with Workers in the Field:**

· Use a two-way radio

· Use a portable TTY

· Use a paging device

· Use a portable computer

**Responding to Emergency Alarms:**

· Provide visual or tactile alerting device

· Implement a buddy system

**Responding to Other Sounds in the Environment:**

· Provide auditory signal software to replace computer sounds

· Allow the use of a hearing dog

· Provide a visual or tactile signal

**Dealing with Extraneous Noises:**

· Provide sound absorbing panels and carpeting

· Prohibit the use of personal radios

· Separate the workstation from noisy equipment

**Working Safely Around Vehicles and Heavy Equipment:**

· Establish paths of travel for forklifts, vehicles, and heavy equipment  

· Install flashing lights and mirrors on forklifts and vehicles 

· Invite the person with hearing loss to wear a hard hat or colored vest 

· Use a vibrating one-touch pager 

· Install a portable CCTV in the forklift  

**Wearing Hearing Protection:**

· Use electronic hearing protection that filters out damaging noise while allowing the user to hear human voices

**Accessing Information from Video Tape:**

· Add captions to in-house videos

· Purchase captioned videos

· Provide an interpreter

· Provide a script of the video

**Transcribing Information from Audio Tape:**

· Attach a pressure zone microphone (PZM) to the recording device

· Use a direct audio-input device, in-line amplifier, sound equalizer, or amplified headset

· Use the T-coil in a hearing aid and wear a headset just in front of the ear

**Communicating with Customers or Clients:**

· Notify customers that the employee has a hearing loss and that they should look directly at the employee when speaking (the employee must agree to this accommodation) and ask customers to write their questions

· Place mirrors strategically around the work area to help alert the employee to the presence of customers  

**Taking Vital Signs:**

· Provide an amplified stethoscope

· Provide a graphic auscultation system to provide a visual display of sounds made by the heart

· Provide a digital read-out blood pressure monitor

**Resources Specifically for People with Hearing Impairments**

**Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing**

3417 Volta Place NW

Washington DC 20007

Direct: (202)337-5220 

TTY: (202)337-5221

Fax: (202)337-8314

info@agbell.com

http://www.agbell.org

**American Academy of Audiology**

11730 Plaza America Drive, Suite 300 

Reston, Virginia 20190 

Toll Free: (800)222-2336

Direct: (703)790-8466

Fax: (703)790-8631

info@audiology.org

# http://www.audiology.com

**American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA)**

2200 Research Boulevard

Rockville, Maryland 20850-3289

Toll Free: (800)638-8255

Direct: (301) 296-5700

http://www.asha.org

**National Association of the Deaf (NAD)**

8630 Fenton Street, Suite 820

Silver Spring, MD  20910-3819

Direct: (301)587-1788

TTY: (301)587-1789 

Fax: (301)587-1791

http://www.nad.org/

**National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication****Disorders (NIDCD)**

National Institutes of Health

31 Center Drive, MSC 2320

Bethesda, MD 20892-2320

Toll Free: (800)241-1044

Direct: (301)496-7243

TTY: (800)241-1055

Fax: (301)402-0018

nidcdinfo@nidcd.nih.gov

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov

Updated 3/23/10.

This document was developed by the Job Accommodation Network, funded by a contract agreement from the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy (DOL079RP20426). The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the U.S. Department of Labor. Nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Fact Sheet Series

Job Accommodations for People with Hearing Loss