Association between noise annoyance and socioeconomic status of the employees in an electrical panel manufacturer

Abstract

Noise is considered as one of the most influential physical factors in working environments. The advancement of industries has made it a threat to the physical and mental health of individuals on a global scale. Over the past twenty years, there has been strong evidence of a relation between the impact of external factors, lifestyle, and socioeconomic status. The present research aimed to investigate the association between noise annoyance and the socioeconomic status of the employees in an electrical panel manufacturer. At the first stage, initial visits and a survey of the factory were carried out. At the next stage, the noise level the workers were exposed to was measured using a dosimetry method. Then, the annoyance and socioeconomic status questionnaires were distributed among the employees. Having been collected, the questionnaires were ranked and the data were analyzed using the SPSS software. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between noise exposure and annoyance level, and between annoyance and socioeconomic status of the workers.