As the diversity of California's population continues to expand, it's more important than ever for organizations to address the needs of non-native speaking employees as well as customers. Improving communication between non-native and native speaking employees can increase productivity and efficiency, while facilitating interactions with non-native speaking customers and clients can result in higher quality services and enhanced customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Many Bay Area organizations have initiated programs to help bridge the gap between non-native and native speakers. Kaiser Permanente has created a Qualified Bilingual Staff Program to identify, train and reward skilled bilingual employees. Kaiser's two-tiered program encompasses both conversational and medical terminology bilingual training. Employees who complete the training and pass a standardized assessment have the opportunity to provide translation services to Kaiser members at an increased hourly pay rate. Learn more

Financially challenged companies may be trying to cut costs by forgoing legal compliance training for their managers and human resources staff, but spikes in harassment and discrimination lawsuits indicate that not providing compliance training ultimately could cost businesses far more than they initially save. Organizations that educate employees on the laws, regulations and company policies that apply to their day-to-day job responsibilities can accomplish several goals, including:

• avoiding and detecting violations by employees that could lead to legal liability for the organization;
• creating a more hospitable and respectful workplace;
• laying the groundwork for a partial or complete defense in the event that employee wrongdoing occurs despite the organization's training efforts.

The Legal Side of Management
Managers today are expected to do more than just supervise daily work activity. They are also legally obligated to understand and enforce company employment policies and procedures to reduce the chance of discrimination and lawsuits. Taking critical precautions and having a clear understanding of the law will minimize employment discrimination and maximize equal employment opportunity. Learn more 

The OSHA Training Center at Chabot-Las Positas Community College District is authorized by the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration to provide high quality, standards-based safety training as mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. The law requires employers to provide their employees with working conditions that are free of known dangers in order to prevent workers from being killed or seriously harmed at work. The Act created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which sets and enforces protective workplace safety and health standards and provides information, training and assistance to workers and employers.

Customized and On-Site Safety Training
The OSHA Training Center offers a wide variety of occupational safety courses at its Dublin Education Center as well as at multiple locations throughout Northern California. All OSHA Training Center courses can be fully customized to accommodate the specific operational requirements of most industries and organizations. OSHA Training Center instructors provide on-site safety training to help reduce staff time away from work, accommodate variable shifts and schedules, and boost the immediate transfer of training to the workplace.

A key strength of the OSHA Training Center is its strong base of highly qualified instructors with extensive training and relevant field experience. All OSHA Training Center instructors teach current OSHA standards using real world examples and personal experiences, as well as provide up-to-date OSHA regulations. Learn more

Contract Education has been working with organizations like yours, from small businesses to large corporations, for more than a decade to provide innovative, practical, and cost-effective learning solutions. Learn more