Workers find ways around language barriers

The Washington Post#

WASHINGTON -- Informal channels of communication, outside the normal chains of command, usually emerge among workers of different backgrounds. In the Washington Hilton's pastry department, for example, Concepcion Carrillo is the conduit who explains to the other Hispanic workers what needs to be done. In housekeeping, it's Evelyn Marshall, an African-American woman who speaks only English. Co- workers say she has an uncanny ability to communicate by tone of voice that allows her to convey even complex thoughts to non-English speakers.

Some companies hire multiple translators. For example, Marriott's nationwide employee assistance program hot line offers counseling services in 15 languages. Many job seekers who do not speak English bring their own translators -- usually an English-speaking friend or relative -- to help them fill out job applications or answer interview questions, managers said. But usually it's the workers themselves who find ways around seemingly insurmountable communication barriers. At the Hilton, for example, the former head of the landscaping department is deaf and mute and reads lips in English. His two co-workers were a Central American man who spoke little English and a hard-of-hearing Turkish man who spoke little English and no Spanish. "I'm deaf and he's deaf, too, so it's perfect," said Oktay Guney, from Istanbul, laughing as he explained how they relied on lip- reading, hand gestures and a shared knowledge of what needed to be done each day to keep up the Hilton's lawns.

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