Language Barrier: A Safety Concern - Essay Sample

Introduction

The language barrier is only a safety concern because for people to be safe, they have to be made aware of the possible dangers that may be tied to a given operation. This requires training, which, in turn, necessitates thorough communication. Whenever there is a language barrier, there is little understanding and training; therefore, is ineffective. When training fails, people are not well informed as they should; hence, safety is a concern (Hwang et al. 451). Following instructions during production, for instance, requires an understanding of certain languages as necessitated by the specific instructions. Failure of understanding such may lead to cases of fatality. An example is in the manufacturing of chemicals whereby language barrier can cause fire accident, poisonous products, and so on.

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The language barrier does not affect the quality and production in the same way since quality and production are two different things though close. A language barrier may affect quality more than it does affect the production because quality requires full knowledge, concentration of workers, and constant updates throughout the process of production (Gao & Ran 44). For instance, the language barrier causes distraction of workers since they feel they are not part of everything. Others may feel that they are segregated from those of the majority language within the workstation. Likewise, language barrier blocks the communication chain during production and quality suffers the blow.

Production is affected by the language barrier in that, variables such as speed and efficiency of the production process are affected, and both quality and quantity of output are also reduced. Quality of output is a product of the whole production process, and thus since it refers to the end product/service; hence, when the production process is lowered, quality declines. In other words, language barrier affects production in terms of qualitative and quantitative terms. Moreover, the language barrier affects production directly, but it might not affect quality the same way. Quality suffers as a result of an inefficient production process.

Safety issues are not may not always be caused by a language barrier. Actions of the management and staff may also lead to safety issues. Poor lighting and ventilation of the workplace, poor storage of hazardous materials and tools such as in construction sites, workplace violence and stress can easily lead to danger at the workplace. For example, conflicting parties at the workplace and stress cause an unfavourable work environment. Lack of peace of mind implies danger for those involved. Also, a lack of peace among workers does not allow for harmonious coexistence. Such a situation causes tension in the workplace and among employees. (Gao & Ran 41 )The result of this is that safety is implicated negatively. Leadership most times ignore the safety of employees since they might have no time for such. The reason is that they find other issues more pressing such as chasing profits and higher production, quality, and so on. Likewise, management may overlook safety requirements and pay more attention to employee skills.

People are held more accountable for production and quality than they are for safety. Mostly, the production process and quality output is given more attention as compared to the safety of employees. Accidents at places of the works are taken as a normal occurrence, and people are not questioned for not being careful enough when something dangerous happens. An employee is, however, questioned for poor quality work. When someone fails to attend work, they are questioned too. Some employers do not care if that person was sick or not.

The language barrier could be just an excuse for poor management. Sometimes, the management variables such as costs, due diligence in hiring and misappropriation of finances may be done poorly, and such actions reduce the safety of employees. Management may misappropriate finances meant for safety training. Also, workplaces may be insecure due to issues of poor construction and the recklessness of management and blame it on the language barrier.

Works Cited

Gao, Ran, et al. "Investigating the difficulties of implementing safety practices in international construction projects." Safety science 108 (2018): 39-47. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325391645_Investigating_the_difficulties_of_implementing_safety_practices_in_international_construction_projects

Hwang, Bon-Gang, Ming Shan, and Siong Leng Phuah. "Safety in green building construction projects in Singapore: Performance, critical issues, and improvement solutions." KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering 22.2 (2018): 447-458. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs12205-017-1961-3