<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>24903.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>Nov 24, 2009
Mind the language... on the tag
Foreign service staff at airport must wear tags indicating the language they are fluent in
<!-- by line -->By Leow Si Wan
A GLANCE is enough to tell if the foreign-looking waiter or salesgirl at some of Changi Airport's restaurants is proficient in English.
The airport - which has about 300 retailers and restaurants - recently made it mandatory for foreign frontline staff to wear tags specifying the languages they are fluent in so as to tap the native language abilities of staff to serve international tourists.
While it is not compulsory for the tags to spell out English ability as the airport maintains all its staff have 'minimum proficiency' in the language, some restaurants have gone ahead to indicate if their staff can converse comfortably in English. Some have also extended the tag-wearing scheme to Singaporean staff.
Said Miss Chung Peh Fun, 22, a supervisor at Sakae Sushi in Terminal 2: 'Observant English-speaking tourists or customers can look out for staff with tags specifying 'I can speak English' while those from, say, China, will look for staff who speak Mandarin. This helps manage customers' expectations,' she added.
Out of the airport, companies are responding to the call to break down language barriers between foreign frontline staff and the people they serve.
Given the mix of races here, there have been calls for foreign service staff to have a basic grasp of English to handle customers' queries and transactions. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong gave the effort a push when he said earlier this year that employers should send their foreign staff for basic English lessons.
Close to 500 foreigners from over 40 companies have committed to an English language course launched by the NTUC LearningHub and the Migrant Workers Centre (MWC). Classes are conducted twice a week with the aim of improving English proficiency.
The course has two levels, each with a duration of 36 hours. Fees for each level are between $300 and $400 and are heavily subsidised by the MWC. The remaining sums are paid largely by employers.
Classroom learning aside, retailers and restaurants here have also devised their own strategies to overcome the communication barriers.
Retail chain Metro conducts basic English lessons for its frontline staff and has a language lab at every store equipped with online and audio learning resources while beauty chain Sa Sa pairs non-English speaking staff together with those who are fluent in the language.
Some fast-food restaurants start foreign staff with back-end work - chopping vegetables, learning how to prepare burgers and fries - to familiarise them with various terms before sending them to the cash counters.
Said Mr Raphael Chan, country director for sandwich chain Subway here: 'Starting them off at the back-end also helps them get used to the Singaporean way of speaking.
'Many of these foreigners were taught English by native speakers in their own countries but they lack exposure to the language and can't get the Singaporean accent.'
At the airport, the simple tags bring relief. Ms Angela Tan, 30, who was sending off her relative last week, was pleased with the simple way to avoid the frustration of being misunderstood.
The self-employed woman said: 'I have friends who are Chinese and who cannot speak Mandarin. They get very frustrated when they get a waiter who cannot speak English they can understand.
'The tag makes it easier for them to identify those who are fluent in the language.'
[email protected]
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Mind the language... on the tag
Foreign service staff at airport must wear tags indicating the language they are fluent in
<!-- by line -->By Leow Si Wan
A GLANCE is enough to tell if the foreign-looking waiter or salesgirl at some of Changi Airport's restaurants is proficient in English.
The airport - which has about 300 retailers and restaurants - recently made it mandatory for foreign frontline staff to wear tags specifying the languages they are fluent in so as to tap the native language abilities of staff to serve international tourists.
While it is not compulsory for the tags to spell out English ability as the airport maintains all its staff have 'minimum proficiency' in the language, some restaurants have gone ahead to indicate if their staff can converse comfortably in English. Some have also extended the tag-wearing scheme to Singaporean staff.
Said Miss Chung Peh Fun, 22, a supervisor at Sakae Sushi in Terminal 2: 'Observant English-speaking tourists or customers can look out for staff with tags specifying 'I can speak English' while those from, say, China, will look for staff who speak Mandarin. This helps manage customers' expectations,' she added.
Out of the airport, companies are responding to the call to break down language barriers between foreign frontline staff and the people they serve.
Given the mix of races here, there have been calls for foreign service staff to have a basic grasp of English to handle customers' queries and transactions. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong gave the effort a push when he said earlier this year that employers should send their foreign staff for basic English lessons.
Close to 500 foreigners from over 40 companies have committed to an English language course launched by the NTUC LearningHub and the Migrant Workers Centre (MWC). Classes are conducted twice a week with the aim of improving English proficiency.
The course has two levels, each with a duration of 36 hours. Fees for each level are between $300 and $400 and are heavily subsidised by the MWC. The remaining sums are paid largely by employers.
Classroom learning aside, retailers and restaurants here have also devised their own strategies to overcome the communication barriers.
Retail chain Metro conducts basic English lessons for its frontline staff and has a language lab at every store equipped with online and audio learning resources while beauty chain Sa Sa pairs non-English speaking staff together with those who are fluent in the language.
Some fast-food restaurants start foreign staff with back-end work - chopping vegetables, learning how to prepare burgers and fries - to familiarise them with various terms before sending them to the cash counters.
Said Mr Raphael Chan, country director for sandwich chain Subway here: 'Starting them off at the back-end also helps them get used to the Singaporean way of speaking.
'Many of these foreigners were taught English by native speakers in their own countries but they lack exposure to the language and can't get the Singaporean accent.'
At the airport, the simple tags bring relief. Ms Angela Tan, 30, who was sending off her relative last week, was pleased with the simple way to avoid the frustration of being misunderstood.
The self-employed woman said: 'I have friends who are Chinese and who cannot speak Mandarin. They get very frustrated when they get a waiter who cannot speak English they can understand.
'The tag makes it easier for them to identify those who are fluent in the language.'
[email protected]
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