What Does Good Workplace Hearing Inclusion Look Like?
Creating an inclusive workplace means ensuring that everyone can communicate, contribute and feel confident at work. For employees with hearing loss, this is about thoughtful design, clear communication, and the right support.
Good hearing inclusion benefits everyone in the workplace - not just those diagnosed with hearing loss - by improving clarity, reducing fatigue, and making communication more effective across teams.
1. Clear, Accessible Communication by Default
Inclusive workplaces prioritise clarity in everyday communication. This includes:
- Ensuring everyone speaks clearly and faces the person they are addressing
- Reducing unnecessary background noise where possible
- Using written follow-ups after meetings or key discussions
- Making sure only one person speaks at a time in group settings
These small changes really can make a big difference, particularly in meetings, training sessions and busy working environments.
How technology helps: Assistive listening tech such as wireless microphones and soundfield systems help to support clearer speech by delivering sound directly to the listener, cutting through distance and background noise that often otherwise makes communication exhausting.
2. Inclusive Meetings and Training
Meetings are usually where people with hearing loss feel most excluded. Good hearing inclusion means planning meetings so everyone in the room can fully and confidently participate.
This might include:
- Providing agendas in advance
- Ensuring those speaking are visible (good lighting, no talking while turned away)
- Using captions or transcription where appropriate
- Making assistive technology available as standard, not be exception
How technology helps: Personal wireless microphones can be passed between speakers or placed centrally, clearly picking up all the speech in the room. In training or presentation situations, soundfield systems help distribute sound evenly so no one is at a disadvantage based on where they're sitting.
3. Choice and Flexibility
There is no single one-size-fits-all solution for employees with hearing loss. An inclusive workplace will recognise that needs vary, and that employees should feel empowered to make their own choices and have control over what works best for them.
This means:
- Normalising conversations about communication needs
- Offering a range of support options
- Avoiding assumptions about what someone 'should' need
How technology helps: From discreet personal listening systems, to room-based solutions, assistive technology can be tailored to different roles, environments and preferences.
4. Supporting Confidence and Workplace Wellbeing
Struggling to hear at work can lead to fatigue, stress and ultimately, reduced confidence, even when someone is highly capable in their job role. Good hearing inclusion recognises the impact of listening effort and works to reduce it.
How technology helps: By improving speech clarity and reducing the strain of listening, assistive listening devices help employees to stay engaged, feel confident, and remain productive throughout the working day.
Workplace Inclusion is a Process
Good hearing inclusion isn't a one-off adjustment, it's an ongoing commitment to accessible communication, a supportive environment and practical solutions that work in real workplaces.
Assistive listening technology plays a key role in turning inclusion ideas into reality - helping ensure that hearing loss is never a barrier to participation, performance or progression at work.
For more ideas, our Workplace Inclusion Guide helps employers build on awareness with practical, long-term action, from information on funding and support, to guidance on inclusive meeting and communication practices. Visit our workplace inclusion page for more information.