Wholesale and Retail Trade (WRT) Statistics

At a glance

  • View hearing loss statistics among wholesale and retail trade (WRT) workers.
  • Approximately 9% of all Wholesale Trade workers and 9% of all Retail Trade workers have hearing difficulty.
  • About 6% of all Wholesale Trade workers and 7% of all Retail Trade workers have tinnitus.
  • 51% of noise-exposed Wholesale Trade workers and 74% of noise-exposed Retail Trade workers report not wearing hearing protection.
African American retail worker.

Noise exposure and hearing protection

  • About 28% of all workers in Wholesale Trade and 17% of all workers in Retail Trade have been exposed to hazardous noise.1
  • 51% of noise-exposed Wholesale Trade workers and 74% of noise-exposed Retail Trade workers report not wearing hearing protection.2

Hearing loss and tinnitus

  • Approximately 9% of all Wholesale Trade workers and 9% of all Retail Trade workers have hearing difficulty.1
  • About 6% of all Wholesale Trade workers and 7% of all Retail Trade workers have tinnitus.3
  • About 20% of noise-exposed tested WRT workers have a material hearing impairment.4 Hearing impairment is hearing loss that impacts day-to-day activities.
  • 13% of noise-exposed tested WRT workers have hearing impairment in both ears.5

Trends

Trends among noise-exposed tested WRT workers (1980-2010)4

  • The prevalence for WRT decreased less than 1% over 30 years (1981-2010) as compared with a less than 1% reduction for all industries.
  • The incidence for WRT decreased 3% over 25 years (1986-2010) as compared with a 2% reduction for all industries.
  • The adjusted risk for WRT decreased 55% over 25 years (1986-2010) as compared with a 46% reduction for all industries.
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Graph showing prevalence of hearing loss by time period and industry sector, 1981-2010, for 1,816,812 workers
Adapted from Figure 1, Masterson et al. 2015
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Graph showing incidence of hearing loss by time period and industry sector, 1986-2010, for 560,320 workers
Adapted from Figure 2, Masterson et al. 2015
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Graph showing risk of incident hearing loss compared to the 1986-1990 time period, by industry sector, for 560,320 workers
Adapted from Figure 3, Masterson et al. 2015

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Content Source:
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
  1. Kerns E, Masterson EA, Themann CL, Calvert GM. (2018). Cardiovascular conditions, hearing difficulty and occupational noise exposure within U.S. industries and occupations. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 61, 477-491.
  2. Green DR, Masterson EA, Themann CL. (2021). Prevalence of hearing protection device non-use among noise-exposed U.S. workers in 2007 and 2014. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 64(12), 1002-1017.
  3. Masterson EA, Themann CL, Luckhaupt SE, Li J. & Calvert GM. (2016). Hearing difficulty and tinnitus among U.S. workers and non-workers in 2007. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 59, 290-300.
  4. Masterson EA, Deddens JA, Themann CL, Bertke S. & Calvert GM. (2015). Trends in worker hearing loss by industry sector, 1981-2010. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 58, 392-401.
  5. Masterson EA, Bushnell PT, Themann CL, & Morata TC. (2016). Hearing impairment among noise-exposed workers — United States, 2003–2012. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 65(15), 389-394.