The challenge of a safety supervisor is to make sure everyone gets the information and the training he or she needs to work safely. If English won’t do the job, you need to find a way to carry the message to each and every worker.

Consider these methods:

• Post safety signs written in the languages of your workplace. Two languages equals two versions of every safety message.
• Be sensitive to literacy problems in all of your workers. Some may not be able to read or write in any language, typically as a result of having to go to work at a young age instead of staying in school.
• Use pictures, symbols and color-coding to communicate safety information.
• Demonstrate how to do a task safely, and have your trainees demonstrate what they have learned.
• Use plain, clear, simple language, no matter what language you are speaking. Avoid jargon and slang, which can cause confusion.
• Promote language and literacy programs in your workplace. Helping people learn to read and write, to develop business and trade skills is a good investment of time and money for your company. The payoff is a more effective workforce with fewer losses in the form of injuries and errors.
• Try to learn the other languages of your workplace. If nothing else, master basic greetings and other words used to denote respect for one another. Try to develop a vocabulary of words needed for communicating about safety and production in your particular industry.

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