Noise-induced hearing loss rarely announces itself. It builds over years on factory floors, building sites, mines, workshops and airfields, until conversations in a crowded room become hard to follow or the television keeps getting louder. Queensland's workers' compensation law treats this kind of hearing loss as a separate category, called industrial deafness, with its own eligibility rules, its own limits on what is paid and its own assessment process.

Key points

  • Industrial deafness is hearing loss caused by excessive noise where employment is a significant contributing factor; it is paid as a lump sum, not weekly payments.
  • You need at least five years' employment in Queensland at a place where noise contributed to the loss, and you must claim while working, while temporarily unemployed, or within 12 months of formally retiring.
  • An audiologist assesses the loss, the first 5% is not compensated, and a damages claim against a negligent employer may be possible.

What counts as industrial deafness

Section 32 of the Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 includes in the meaning of injury "loss of hearing resulting in industrial deafness" where employment is a significant contributing factor to the loss. The Act's dictionary defines industrial deafness as loss of hearing caused by excessive noise, other than total loss of hearing in either ear.

WorkCover Queensland describes it as hearing loss that happens over time from working in a noisy environment, which is not the same as losing hearing suddenly from a single loud noise or injury. A sudden loss from one event, or total loss of hearing in an ear, sits outside the industrial deafness rules and is dealt with under the general rules for work injuries.

Who can claim

Section 125 of the Act sets conditions that do not apply to other injuries:

  • Five years in Queensland. You must have been employed in an industry in Queensland for at least five years in total, at a location or locations where the noise level was a significant contributing factor to the deafness. The five years can be one period or several periods added together.
  • When you apply. The application must be made while you are a worker under the Act, while you would ordinarily be a worker but are temporarily unemployed, or within 12 months after your formal retirement. A person who retired more than 12 months ago cannot make an industrial deafness claim.
  • What is paid. Compensation is limited to a lump sum for permanent impairment, the cost of medical treatment by a registered person, and travel expenses. Other entitlements, including weekly payments, are not available for industrial deafness.

WorkCover's guidance says the claim needs a diagnosis of industrial deafness and a work capacity certificate from your doctor confirming it. The general rule in section 131 is that an application must be lodged within six months after the entitlement to compensation arises, which section 141 ties to the day a doctor assesses the injury. If you are unsure whether you count as a worker, for example after years as a contractor, see our guide to contractors, labour hire and ABN workers.

How hearing loss is assessed

If the claim is accepted, WorkCover arranges a hearing test with an audiologist. Section 179 requires the degree of permanent impairment (DPI) for industrial deafness to be assessed by an audiologist, as a percentage, in the way the scheme directions require. WorkCover's guidance points to the hearing section of the Office of Industrial Relations' Guidelines for Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, and notes that a DPI can be 0%.

When the offer is worked out, WorkCover excludes:

  • hearing loss that happened outside Queensland or while you were self-employed;
  • the first 5% of hearing loss, which the Act excludes from lump sum compensation (WorkCover describes this as hearing loss that occurs naturally over a person's life);
  • hearing loss already counted in an earlier assessment.

Under the Regulation, the lump sum is the maximum statutory compensation figure set under the Act multiplied by your DPI, and section 180 says the amount is calculated as at the day the insurer makes the offer.

Tinnitus and hearing aids

Many people with noise damage also have tinnitus. WorkCover's industrial deafness guidance describes the statutory assessment in terms of hearing loss and does not mention tinnitus separately, so read the audiologist's report and ask how any tinnitus has been dealt with. In a damages claim, the Regulation's scale for ear injuries expressly lists the presence and severity of tinnitus as a factor in assessing general damages.

On treatment, section 125 limits industrial deafness compensation to medical treatment by a registered person under section 211(1)(a) and travel expenses under section 219(1). The separate paragraph covering supplies, curative apparatus and assistive devices is not among the provisions listed. If you need hearing aids, ask the insurer in writing whether and on what basis it will pay before you buy them.

The lump sum and common law damages

The audiologist's result arrives in a Notice of Assessment with a lump sum offer. The usual rules apply: if your DPI is under 20%, you must make an irrevocable choice between accepting the lump sum and seeking damages; at 20% or more you can accept the lump sum and still seek damages. WorkCover's own guidance suggests thinking about a damages claim before deciding on the offer if you believe your employer was at fault.

A damages claim requires proof of negligence. The Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 sets an exposure standard for noise (an eight-hour average of 85 dB(A), or a peak of 140 dB(C)) and requires the business to keep noise exposure within it. Where workers must wear hearing protection because of noise above that standard, the business must provide audiometric testing within three months of the worker starting and at least every two years. A failure to manage noise is the kind of evidence a damages claim is built on. Our guide to statutory claims and common law damages explains the difference.

Practical steps

  • Get a hearing test and see your doctor about a diagnosis and work capacity certificate.
  • Write out your work history: each employer, dates, location, the machinery or tools used and whether hearing protection was supplied or worn. The five-year Queensland requirement and the exclusion of self-employed periods make this list central.
  • Collect records: earlier hearing tests from employers, pre-employment medicals, noise surveys and any complaints about noise.
  • Note the 12-month window if you have retired or are about to.
  • If your hearing gets worse later, a further application can be lodged more than three years after the previous one, and further lump sum compensation is payable only for a further loss of more than 1%.

For help with a claim, see our workers' compensation page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I claim for industrial deafness after I retire? Only if you apply within 12 months after your formal retirement. After that, the Act does not allow an industrial deafness application.

Does WorkCover pay weekly payments for hearing loss? No. Industrial deafness is compensated by a lump sum, the cost of medical treatment by a registered person and travel expenses, and not under other provisions of the Act.

Why was my lump sum offer lower than my hearing test suggested? The first 5% of hearing loss is not compensated, and loss from outside Queensland, from self-employment or already counted in an earlier claim is excluded.

Can I claim again if my hearing gets worse? Yes, if more than three years have passed since your last application and the further loss is more than 1%.

Sources

  • Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (Qld), ss 32, 124–126, 131, 141, 179–182, 189, 211, 219, 237, sch 6 (definition of industrial deafness) — legislation.qld.gov.au
  • Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation Regulation 2025 (Qld), s 117 and the injury scale values for ear injuries — legislation.qld.gov.au
  • Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), ss 56–58 — legislation.qld.gov.au
  • WorkCover Queensland, Industrial deafness — workcoverqld.com.au
  • WorkCover Queensland, Lump sum payments for permanent impairment — workcoverqld.com.au
  • WorkSafe Queensland, Managing noise and preventing hearing loss at work Code of Practice 2021 — worksafe.qld.gov.au