Writing for Occupational Hazards, Casey Hayes, engineering manager at Haws Corp. of Sparks, Nevada, says that many employers are not prepared to communicate important emergency information to a multilingual work force that does not speak or read English. He cites as an example the use of signage to identify the availability of things like fire extinguishers and emergency eyewashes. So, how does a concerned employer respond?
Hayes suggests the adoption of the industry-accepted standard for color usage. He states: "ANSI Standard Z535.1 establishes standardized safety color codes for industrial purposes, while ANSI Standard Z535.2 establishes environmental and facility safety sign guidelines aimed at uniformity, including consistent color use and visual layout." When properly used, this type of scheme can assist in minimizing reliance on signage wording. Safety green, for example, is used to designate the location of first aid and emergency response equipment, including drench showers (pictured) and eyewashes. Hayes notes that there are numerous reports of accident rates declining by as much as 40 percent when a color identification program, with training, is put into place.
For a list of the safety color codes and their intended applications, as well as a discussion of the other basic issues of conveying emergency information to a multilingual work force, see Hayes' article--"Emergency Response for the Multicultural Work Force". (Image courtesy of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.)
