Safety instructions for new employees and staff who speak different languages

Safety is the number-one priority for all of us. However, it can sometimes be hard to prevent accidents. Especially when your employees do not all speak the same language. If they do not understand your safety rules and instructions, they run significant risks and could inadvertently endanger others.

Language is of crucial importance when it comes to starting a new job safely. Anyone who does not understand the information that they receive during onboarding or the safety instructions provided by their employer runs the risk of becoming the victim of accidents or of creating unsafe work situations themselves. Together with ToWorkSafe, we have created an industry-specific and visual package to ensure that your new employees, who speak different languages, are well informed and can get started and you can create a safe working environment. 

Your journey to a safe working environment consists of three phases:

  1. Onboarding new or non-native employees
  2. Issuing safety instructions to the employees concerned
  3. Drawing up an action plan

Phase 1 – Onboarding new or non-native employees

You are sure to have lots of questions. Are onboarding sessions for new employees a legal requirement? Or are they needed only for those who speak different languages? And how should you organise all of that? The ToWorkSafe welcome package answers all these questions and more. After all, it is important to highlight all the risks within your organisation to new employees during their onboarding period.

The welcome package includes:

  • A ready-made template for a welcome brochure, containing useful tips that you can adapt to your organisation in just a few clicks
  • A checklist to help you make sure that you have all the necessary forms ready for new employees
  • A welcome video that uses recognisable examples to show what is – and isn’t – permitted at a company in your sector
  • Posters that visually inform your new employees about what to do in the event of a fire or accident
  • An onboarding checklist in eleven languages with which you confirm that new employees have been welcomed in their own language

The ToWorkSafe package means you w ill not overlook a thing during the onboarding process and that your new employees are well informed and able to get started. The package remains available to you too, so you can use all these handy tools as often as you like – for every new employee.

Phase 2 – Clear safety instructions for every employee

Anyone can work in safety only if they fully understand what that involves. You can help them do so with clear instructions, but how do you do that if some of your staff speak different languages? The ToWorkSafe instruction package will keep you on the right path.

The instruction package consists of:

  • Industry-specific safety instruction cards with background information to ensure you are even better prepared to start using the package – the Safety Instruction Box.
  • Safety Instruction Box – An interactive game box that helps you visually:
    • Provide instructions on the most common risks in your sector
    • Show the difference between safe and unsafe situations
    • Suggest the necessary precautions and (personal) protective equipment
  • A checklist for instructions in eleven languages (English, Dutch, Arabic, Turkish, French, German, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Bulgarian) which allows new employees to confirm that they have received the instructions in their own language.

Language is no longer a barrier with the ToWorkSafe package. Even if your employees speak a different language, they will soon understand your safety policy. The useful drawings, pictograms, translations and more ensure that they will know how to keep themselves and their colleagues safe. Because that remains the number-one priority.

Phase 3 – Draw up a ToWorkSafe action plan

Developing a ToWorkSafe action plan means that you will have even more control over your specific risks and wellbeing. What does it involve?

  • Risk assessment – Identify the specific safety requirements in your organisation. Our experts will make sure your risk assessment runs smoothly and provides valuable insights.
  • Safety culture – Transform ‘knowing what is safe’ into ‘staying safe at work’ and invest in a safety culture that is supported by management and each and every employee. This approach ensures working safely becomes a genuine reflex.
  • Training – The importance of training to ensure everyone stays safe cannot be overestimated. Furthermore, many training courses aren’t just necessary, they’re also a legal requirement. 

Our safety experts will help you create and implement your ToWorkSafe action plan. We will recommend the appropriate method for your risk assessment, work with you to foster a widespread safety culture and provide targeted training courses for your employees and managers.