5.2 Working with a deaf employee
Activity 6: Zahara’s struggles at work
Zahara is profoundly deaf. She works in a fast-paced office which operates a hotdesk policy. More often than not, nobody says ‘hello/good morning’ etc to Zahara. On this particlar day, Zahara and the team are called into a meeting at short notice. The meeting makes no sense as everyone is speaking simultaneously so it is extremely difficult to lip-read. In the end Zahara gives up. As a result, Zahara has no idea what’s going on and what to do.
Write down your thoughts on this scenario and what you could do to help as a manager/colleague in your place of work.
Discussion
Having a deaf employee within your team can be incredibly isolating for the individual. Imagine not really having anyone to speak to within that environment, not being able to ask how your weekend was or how you’re getting on at work.
Learn some basic BSL and even the key jargon words. Doing this not only helps your team member to feel included, but also helps them to understand what you’re trying to communicate to them.
Write in plain English. This helps the deaf person to understand the message you are trying to relay to them.
Use other resources, such as an interpreter or a notetaker. Using an interpreter will help eliminate that communicate barrier, allowing for smooth communication to take place. Notetakers can be useful for those who are hard of hearing that don’t use BSL.
Take your time when talking and make sure it is easy for them to lip-read you.
In busy meeting scenarios, allow the deaf employee time afterwards to proecss the information and follow up with the invidiual to ensure that they fully understood what was discussed in the meeting.
5.1 Supporting a deaf student