When you have visual communicators such as deaf and hard-of-hearing workers in your workplace, especially in places where masks are required, using masks like The Communicator and other equipment that supports inclusion and accessibility is crucial. In fact, many of your supervisors, employees, and customers may be deaf or hard of hearing. According to the CDC, 

“Hearing loss is the third most common chronic physical condition in the United States and is twice as prevalent as diabetes or cancer.”

At your place of work, everyone deserves to be a part of the conversation, so to have an inclusive workplace, you need to prioritize accessible masks. Of course, there are additional benefits to wearing masks with clear windows. Safe’N’Clear is dedicated to improving communication and investing in a comfortable mask like The Communicator™, so businesses can foster a safe work environment where employees can truly collaborate. With this passion for changing the face of communication in mind, the team behind the mask has created this quick guide with some of the benefits of wearing clear masks in the workplace. Read all the reasons below! 

1. Allow Everyone to Be Understood with an ADA-Effective Mask 

As an ADA-Accessible mask, The Communicator™ allows face-to-face communication for those that are deaf or hard of hearing or on the Autism spectrum. With fog-free communication and larger-window options enabling you to see more of the face, your employees can lip read and communicate more clearly. Providing this mask with a clear window also allows everyone in your office to communicate effectively and thoroughly work together. 

When everyone can communicate well with clients and fully understand each other on the projects they are working on, work in your office will run smoother and even have the opportunity for greater creativity. That way, your workplace can meet its important goals while supporting accessibility. 

2. Stay Comfortable with a Single-Use Mask Preferred by Deaf Healthcare Workers

While masks are essential in many workplaces and settings, sometimes they can be uncomfortable. Sometimes these masks dig into your ears or even do not fit around your nose correctly, leading to rubbing. 

The Level 1 and Level 3 protection masks available through Safe’N’Clear are designed to be secure, comfortable, and fog resistant. You do not have to worry about adjusting your mask or the mask not being comfortable; you only have to concern yourself with doing the best possible work. 

In fact, healthcare workers who are deaf or hard of hearing recommend the mask for its comfort, even in long shifts. With that focus on comfort and the other benefits the mask provides, The Communicator™ can help workers in all industries stay comfortable while bolstering safety and communication. 

3. Keep Everyone in Your Workplace Safe with an FDA-Approved Mask

Of course, one of the top reasons workplaces wear masks is to prevent transmissible diseases like the flu, COVID-19, respiratory infections, and other airborne diseases. With Fall in full swing, there is the likelihood of a Tripledemic  (respiratory viruses, flu, and COVID) spreading through workplaces. When you wear a surgical face mask with a clear window like The Communicator™, you protect yourself and others from transferring microorganisms, body fluids, and particulate materials.

Taking this critical step to provide masks can help the members of your workplace stay safe. A 2008 study published in PLoS One measured how well masks could protect the wearer against a respiratory virus, finding that surgical masks reduced the chance of exposure by 76 percent. By providing a mask like The Communicator™, your employees can stay safe while doing their important work. As another measure of accessibility, a clear mask also protects immunocompromised workers from being put at risk in the office and helps people with immunocompromised friends or family in their life stay safe. 

Whether or not masks are expressly required in all areas of the workplace, having them for your office, school, healthcare facility, restaurant, or other business can provide a level of safety to your employees. 

4. Make Collaboration and Connection a Part of Your Workspace 

Beyond keeping your employees safe from flu and cold seasons as well as COVID-19, using a mask with a clear window helps ensure workers can also easily see more of their coworkers’ faces. Wearing masks ensures communication with members of your office that are deaf and hard of hearing and improves communication for everyone. When only eyes are revealed, reading social cues and facial expressions can sometimes be strained. By showing more facial expressions, your employees can have a sense of connection that is lost with traditional mask use. 

Many people, as offices have embraced more remote work and technology-enabled processes, have found the process of communication more difficult. Still, people struggle to really collaborate and build bold ideas with their coworkers over a digital format, like Zoom or messaging apps. As Lucidspark found in their survey of managers and employees of remote workspaces, 

“90% rated it as one of their top three concerns related to employees working from home. In contrast, 75% of employees cited collaboration as having suffered the most, rather than productivity. Collaboration was a clear area of focus in distributed workforces during the COVID-19 work-from-home period. In fact, 75% of remote employees who expressed concerns about working from home ranked team collaboration as the aspect of their work that suffered the most.”

Now that work is back in physical workplaces, you can facilitate full collaboration and communication with a mask like The Communicator™. A clear mask will allow you to have more productive brainstorming sessions and bolder ideas now that everyone can be part of the conversation. 

Ready to Support Inclusion and Accessibility With The Communicator™?

Of course, these are just a couple of reasons masks with clear windows can support accessibility and greater communication in your workplace. If you are ready to get The Communicator™ for your work environment so you can ensure everyone can be part of the conversation, Safe’N’Clear would be happy to help! 

Safe‘N’Clear markets The Communicator™ surgical face mask with clear window, the first FDA-approved medical mask. The mask is 100% sourced and made in the USA and is ADA-effective, allowing healthcare facilities to serve patients with accessible, transparent, and clear communication. The Communicator™ is also approved by Health Canada and Europe’s CE mark; The Communicator™ is definitely the best medical-grade mask quality-wise and communication-wise. If you are ready to get started, shop The Communicator™ mask here. You can also learn all about Safe’N’Clear here.