Manufacturing carries more of this obligation than any other part of general industry: in FY2025, occupational noise exposure was one of the ten most frequently cited Federal OSHA standards in the manufacturing sector. Any general industry employer whose workers are exposed at or above 85 dB as an 8-hour time-weighted average must run a hearing conservation program under 29 CFR 1910.95. Within manufacturing, that most often means fabricated metal products, machinery, plastics and rubber, food and beverage processing, and wood products. Outside manufacturing, the obligation follows measured exposure rather than sector: airport ground operations, warehousing and distribution, utilities, waste handling, and grounds maintenance can all reach it.
Construction operates under a separate standard (29 CFR 1926.52) with different program requirements, and mining falls under MSHA rather than OSHA. Inside general industry, the harder question is which employees, not which employer: a baggage-handling area or a distribution center with loud conveyor lines can put some roles over the action level while the rest of the site sits well under it. Where exposure could plausibly reach the action level, and no one has measured it, noise exposure monitoring is the required first step under 1910.95(d).
