<h5>"Sister Jiang, my former colleague also wants to come to work in your shop, he is very diligent, but... He was deaf and mute. ”</h5>
"Huh? It's not easy for deaf people to find a job! That or not... Let him try it? ”
Jiang Chunyan, the owner of the restaurant, did not expect that a restaurant she opened on Wanda Haihui Street in Jinshan last year would welcome one deaf and mute employee after another. In her previous life, she also had no experience with deaf people. Can they adapt to work in the restaurant? How do I communicate with them? Can customers accept them?
More than a year after opening, Jiang Chunyan has figured out the answer to the question. When the number of deaf-mute employees reached three-quarters of the total number of clerks, she gave the restaurant a new name that was clear at a glance , Silent Restaurant.
There is no hustle and bustle of ordinary restaurants, no constant shouting and bells, and even the customers who are seated are just talking softly. On October 26, an Internet celebrity UP owner walked into the store, picked up his mobile phone and recorded a video: "There is a calm atmosphere here. ”
Video loading...
<h2>The first deaf-mute employee became the restaurant manager</h2>
"We can't hear you, but we'd love to help you. Thank you! ”
If it wasn't for the billboard with cartoon characters painted on the entrance of the store, if it wasn't for the signs that could be found everywhere in the store... Jiang Chunyan's small shop in Jinshan may be no different from the countless small shops in Shanghai, which is a storefront that neighbors are familiar with - selling beef fried buns and various types of noodles.
But walking into this shop, you can quickly see that it is different, compared to the bustle and noise of the general restaurant, this shop is a bit quiet. This has a lot to do with the identity of the waiter in this store, and 6 of the 8 clerks are deaf and mute. In order to facilitate the distinction between customers, the uniforms of the clerks were printed with their respective names: "Deaf-dumb store manager Bohu", "Deaf-mute employee Guifei"...
Jiang Chunyan said that these are all improved when decorating the silent restaurant. "In the past, there was no special prompt in the store, and customers came to call them, and when they didn't get a response, they came to me to complain. But as soon as I explained, they understood, apologized, and gave them a thumbs up. ”
From the attitude of customers, Jiang Chunyan saw the acceptance and recognition of special groups in society. In a sense, this is also the reason why she insists on hiring deaf-mute shop assistants.
Speaking of the fate of the restaurant and the deaf-mute employees, it also comes from the old clerk Xiong Zhengxiang in the store. He is recommended as Zhou Xuejun, 41 years old, who has experience in the catering industry before, but he is a back kitchen. In Xiong Zhengxiang's mouth, this former colleague worked diligently, every procedure was clean and neat, and he was always praised by the owner.
It was last November, the store had just opened a month ago, and I needed help. Such a person, use or not? Jiang Chunyan was caught in a dilemma. In the restaurant industry for more than a decade, she had never thought of hiring a deaf mute as a waiter. The other party can't speak, can they get used to it? I don't know sign language, how do I communicate with each other?
But if you refuse, will it hurt the other party's self-esteem? It's not easy for them to find a job! After consulting with her lover, Jiang Chunyan planned to try: "First let him try for two or three days, and I will give him a salary." If it works, you can keep doing it. ”
Unexpectedly, Zhou Xuejun, who was smiling and smiling, went to the front station, and she liked this prospective employee. During the trial, she closely observed his operation methods in the back kitchen and felt very satisfied: "The details are better than the average employee!" For example, when Zhou Xuejun fished the good noodles into the bowl, he would naturally control the water in the bowl and fish it again, and clean up the table after drying.
In this way, Zhou Xuejun became the first deaf-mute employee of the restaurant, with the name "Bohu". After a while, his wife also became a waiter in the restaurant, and because of her beautiful appearance, she was given the name "Noble Concubine". Previously, his wife worked in the same restaurant as him, but because she was deaf and mute, she could only be considered a helper.
After the news spread, some deaf and mute people came to apply for clerks, including "Bo Hu's" classmates. After examining their work ability and working attitude, Jiang Chunyan issued employment notices one by one. Because of his excellent performance, "Bo Hu" was promoted to the manager of the restaurant.
<h2>On the review site, customers like "good service"</h2>
Every day at noon and in the evening, during the restaurant's busiest hours, the clerks shuttle between the seats. After cleaning up a table, the clerk "Noble Concubine" sneaked to the dining window, typed a few sign languages at the kitchen colleagues, took the small tickets and meals handed out, and brought them to a man's table. Only to see her lean over slightly, put away the number plate, smile at the man, put away the meal, and go to the next table.
There sat two ladies, and after raising her hand, she showed an inquiring look, and according to the other party's indication, she brought the two bowls of noodles to their eyes, and then pointed to the sign, indicating that the other party could go and get the dishes by herself, and then waved away.
At the same time, the store manager "Bo Hu" is also busy in front of the take-out window. Seeing a child suddenly crying, "Bo Hu" hurriedly came, took out the candy, and laughed and teased the child. The child took the sugar, and the tears were still flowing. Bo Hu gently picked up the child in the seat, gently stroked the child's back, and waited for him to calm down.
The catering industry is fiercely competitive, and it is a special moment of the epidemic, can the operation of silent restaurants be maintained?
Jiang Chunyan has calculated an account: such a small shop, if it uses normal employees, only needs 6 people. But she feels that it is more meaningful to be able to give some help to special people while doing business. "What they need is not mercy, but an opportunity to support themselves." In her view, the expression of love should be implemented in specific matters, such as providing employment opportunities for the disabled, or putting up posters in front of the store to invite the disabled and the elderly over 80 years old to eat noodles for free.
She laughed at the questions that she recruited people with disabilities to obtain government subsidies and benefits. "I haven't taken any subsidies. The policy says that hiring employees with disabilities is tax-free, but I don't need to. I have a balance on my books, no surplus, and no taxes to deduct on my own. ”
Silent restaurants are not new in The country and have their own characteristics. In Jiang Chunyan's shop, the deaf and mute clerks who had only been engaged in the kitchen work before came to the front of the stage to provide guests with food delivery and direct contact with the guests, which was also specially arranged by her.
"Silence doesn't mean you can't have direct contact with guests," she said. Their work should not be confined to the back kitchen, they should be encouraged to come out. ”
In her shop, some shifts of ordering and cashiering may be handled by deaf and mute employees. Customers who come to dine refer to the dishes on the menu, compare the quantity, hand over coins or scan the code to pay. The kitchen staff makes meals according to the order situation, and the delivery waiter delivers the prepared meals to the customer's seat according to the list, with a warm smile, pointing to the warm tips on the table, reminding the customer to go to the self-service area to get toothpicks, dishes, paper towels and other small items. No verbal communication is required and the service is completed smoothly.
On the review site, dozens of customers labeled the store as "good service." Netizen "july724" left a message: "The service of deaf and dumb people is not inferior to other personnel at all, and the work is serious and responsible, all very good." "And praise for their self-sufficiency." Netizens "fried chicken burger plus coke" feel that although "I can't hear the welcome at the door, the tissues and packing boxes are self-service, but the service is really intimate, and I was taught sign language, do an action and then type the meaning of sign language on the mobile phone." Some netizens mentioned a detail - the waiter helped separate the meat on the bone of the cow barrel, which warmed his heart: "It is really very thoughtful!" ”
<h2>Learn to communicate in sign language and bring your heart closer</h2>
"If one day, you can come to our shop to eat bowl noodles, that is the greatest support for us."
In order to promote the silent restaurant on Douyin, Jiang Chunyan learned sign language from deaf and dumb employees and recorded videos.
"On these few actions, I practiced for a morning, and deeply realized how hard and difficult it is for them to immerse themselves in the silent world and learn how hard and difficult it is to communicate with others in order to use sign language."
Today, Jiang Chunyan can already communicate with deaf and mute employees in basic sign language. "It's hard to imagine that just a year ago, I didn't know anything about this way of communicating."
At that time, she relied mainly on her mobile phone to type in communication with them. She posted tasks in the WeChat work group to explain what to do, and deaf-mute employees replied with concise words "OKAY", "got it", or asked further. After chatting for a long time, Jiang Chunyan found that "ordinary people may use complex language techniques to modify their intentions, but their expression is always the simplest and most direct." She began to appreciate this purity without any whitewash.
Under the leadership of the store manager "Bo Hu", deaf and dumb employees have their own set of communication methods, such as eye contact, slight smile, or a small gesture. "They have a tacit understanding, and they can understand each other's intentions when they raise their hands and feet." There are two deaf-mute employees in my shop who live far away, one lives in Zhujing and one lives in Tinglin. But they refused to work closer to home, preferring to come here to work because they could find a partner here and have a greater sense of belonging. ”
In order to enter the world of deaf and mute employees, Jiang Chunyan asked herself and ordinary employees to learn sign language. After learning sign language, Jiang Chunyan found that she and their hearts were closer. When they are not understood because of the difficulties in life, she can use sign language to convey understanding and encouragement. When she wept over their bumpy life circumstances, they would also comfort her with sign language and gestures, thanking her for treating them as their own.
"Sometimes I think they are smart, kind, lovely people, but life is missing such a little. Heaven closed one of their doors, but they used all their strength and knitted dreams with their hands. In this regard, being with them every day is also an inspiration for my life. Jiang Chunyan blushed.
Although the operation of the silent restaurant is not hot, Jiang Chunyan insists on implementing wages, subsidies and vacations one by one. She said her biggest wish at the moment is to keep the silent restaurant open.
Some old customers gave Jiang Chunyan a trick, thinking that the food characteristics in the restaurant could be more prominent in order to attract repeat customers. Some people also suggested that she make the story of the silent restaurant into a video scroll to let more customers know more... In the face of the kindness and warmth passed on by these old customers, Jiang Chunyan is always encouraged.
"Restaurants are a business for me, and for these deaf employees, they are a valuable job opportunity. They are very simple, just doing their best to do things, and never asked me for subsidies, overtime pay. I told them that we sell food, we don't sell miserably, as long as the world can give us a chance, we will rely on our own hands to work hard, to fight for a promising future. ”
Source: Thoughtful