They speak with their arms, hands and fingers. Almost silently, they move their lips, signal with their eyes and nod their heads. They understand.

Five deaf employees have had the silence broken at their workplace. Their colleagues have learned sign language, so now everyone is able to talk to one another.

In March 2009, 15 employees from the slaughterhouse in Horsens meet once a week to learn sign language. It has enabled them to better understand their deaf colleagues in a new and visual world.

I know my deaf colleagues much better now because I can communicate with them. For example, I know their family relations. I know they have wives and children, and other basic facts. I didn’t know that before because it was far too difficult to find out, and it obviously means a lot if you want to understand people, says Michael Skov Jensen, spokesman in the front part section.

Did not communicate with one another
He is one of 15 employees who have started to learn sign language. He has spent three years working in the same section as his two deaf colleagues without even exchanging any general information about each other. Because it felt awkward to try and much easier to avoid doing so. But thanks to the course, the ‘silence’ has now been broken.

Just being able to ask “How are you?” creates a completely different atmosphere. It’s not something we’ve done before, says Michael Skov Jensen.

There are five deaf employees at the slaughterhouse in Horsens, and two of them are giving the lessons in sign language.