English as a Second Language?
Economic realities being what they are today, FBOs are hiring more and more non-native speakers of English — Some legal, some not so legal. But this isn’t going to be a diatribe against immigrants — far from it. I’m a big believer in the American dream, and the immigrant’s place in that dream.
But I’m also a big safety advocate and I’ve been concerned for a while that FBOs are not providing non-native speakers with the tools they need to perform their jobs. Those tools include either adequate training in reading and writing English — too expensive for most FBOs — or translations of enough technical data to ensure workers have the safety info they need.
Who’s making sure that these workers read enough English to ensure the safety of the work they perform? Too few workplaces translate key technical and safety information for their workers. And even those who may have some Spanish translations, what about all those non-Spanish speaking foreign workers? How are they getting their information?
Some data is available for free from manufacturers and oil companies. Sometimes you may need to pay. I’ve been using Continental Translation Service in Manhattan that specializes in technical translations — a family-run company in business more than 50 years. And they’ve been doing aviation translations at least that long. I recently cadged a 1949 aviation maintenance book from their library (interesting read, more to follow). But no matter what company you use, you need to make sure the company has the technical expertise to provide the quality work you need.
Everyone has an interest in making sure that their workforce reads and writes enough English to perform their jobs safely. Sure, it’s a management issue, but everyone has a role to play. If you have a co-worker who can’t read enough English to know what to do, you have an obligation to speak up. The individual either needs better training — or more multilingual aids.
March 31st, 2009 at 6:08 pm
[comment edited] when our rampies come off the ramp , say for lightning/ bad weather , the vendors keep on working …are we all on the same page for safety… we dont label any gse equipment in any other language…the msd manual is in english … i dont think safety is at the top of the list any more….just a buzz word …. as far as the reading /writing , lots of our home grown talent has the same issue…lower wages dont attract the educated ..wasnt that a earlier blog?
April 3rd, 2009 at 12:00 pm
i am pretty such all the words i used are in in dictionary …how does one pass a ten year background check and not read /write english…come to chicago and we can walk the under side of the terminal from international the k,g e, f, sides, cargo and you can tell me what you observe …also i worked field service in miami in the garage area(away from the terminal) and english is truely a second language
April 9th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
Im a ramper for a major u.s. airline’ having worked in both a major hub and also a small station. The hub was by far the worse for vendors’ most of which seem to be from Salvador or Nigeria. They speak no english and have very poor ramp driving skills’ which I partly blame on the airport authority for not having some sort of driving test or driving qualification process in place. Most don’t hold a regular drivers license anyways. How do these people get qualified on dangerous goods handling or hazardous materials spills if they can’t read or speak english?? How can the airport or vendor do a 10yr background check on somebody that has only lived in the USA for a very short time?
April 14th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
Having flown to various cities in South America and in the US I’d think speaking english may be the problem. Take a look at the GSE from Brazil, Colombia, Argentina or DR look as opposed to LGA, JFK, DTW, LAX, ORD, FLL, IAD and I’d think you retune your diatribe just a tad - its all about your HR team and the quality of the individual applicant, Russian, Chinese, Mexican, Canadian etc.