March 21, 2025 Breaking Language Barriers Saves Manufacturers $500K

Communication tools can be the key to overcoming workforce challenges and fostering a well-connected team.

By Chris Chuang, CEO at Relay

Some might wonder why manufacturing – which faces a massive labor shortage – hasn’t embraced more communication technology to better support, empower and retain shop floor workers. After all, 60% of manufacturers in 2024 cited the inability to attract and retain employees as their top business challenge.

Some of the best workers on the shop floor are not necessarily fully English proficient. Language barriers are an increasing obstacle, as well as overall productivity challenges. Interestingly, while the advent of Industry 4.0/5.0 has driven significant advancements with digitalization and technology adoption – from robotic automation to AI – this investment in technology is not yet really reaching the frontline worker.

In fact, a new survey of manufacturing and warehousing professionals, conducted by my team at Relay, found that 83% of frontline workers expressed a desire for better technology-driven translation solutions. With the same survey finding these language barriers cost companies nearly $500,000 annually in unseen labor costs, real-time translation technology is no longer a nice to have, it’s a necessity.

And if you’re wondering: why now? It’s needed to help address the ever-growing labor shortage in manufacturing. According to the 2023 U.S. Census, nearly 30 million people in the U.S. identified as having limited English proficiency (LEP). This is 9% of the entire population – and a group that should be engaged to help address manufacturing’s labor gap. I can think of no better time to expand the talent pool by breaking down language barriers through modern communication solutions.

Language Barriers: A Silent Killer of Productivity

As leaders, we understand that communication is essential to business success. Yet, the true cost of language barriers remains largely unaccounted for. Take for example, a bilingual employee who is regularly called upon to help translate for LEP colleagues. Several times a day, this employee must pause their work, serve as a translator, confirm alignment and only then return to their work. It may seem like a quick task, but these disruptions add up, costing the employee and the company hours in productivity loss.

This scenario is all too common on shop floors. In fact, Relay’s research found that 45% of respondents believe their worksite efficiency is negatively impacted by language barriers. And even more respondents (86%) report productivity losses due to communication issues. This time can quickly add up. According to the report, bilingual workers spend an average of four hours per week translating, costing businesses approximately $7,500 per bilingual employee each year in misallocated labor costs. Meanwhile, workflow delays cost companies approximately $1,800 annually per LEP worker.

While multilingual teams are scrappy with the resources available to them, such as translation apps, these ad hoc tools take time and attention away from work tasks. In fact, LEP employees report they spend an average of 6.5 hours a week using translation tools, costing companies more than $4,900 in lost labor costs per employee per year. When these inefficiencies are combined, it becomes clear that language barriers are a significant driver of reduced productivity, directly impacting a manufacturer’s bottom line.

Lost in Translation: A Safety Hazard

Beyond productivity loss, language barriers create serious safety risks, particularly in high-stakes environments such as manufacturing. OSHA reports that language barriers are a factor in about 25% of all workplace accidents.

This statistic isn’t surprising when you consider the fact that the majority of manufacturers still have core shop floor processes on paper. Safety protocols are ever-changing, and when most safety resources and guides are on paper, it can be time consuming to update them. As a result, we see many manufacturers trying to address the fact that a portion of their workforce is left in the dark on crucial, updated safety measures. Avoiding this risk is critical to meet state and union safety requirements.

Equally important is the ability to communicate effectively in emergencies. For example, if an employee struggles to understand instructions or hesitates due to a language barrier, it could be the difference between a quick response and a disaster. It’s essential that teams have clear, immediate communication in high-stakes scenarios, and investment in new technologies can do just that.

Opportunity for All

Productivity, efficiency, and safety are important objectives for manufacturing shop floors, yet with today’s labor shortage, employee retention and growth is also more important than ever.

I can’t think of a better example of the power of investing in your employees than that of a medical manufacturer I recently worked with. They wanted to implement new communications technology, not because they felt they had an operations issue, but rather because they wanted to better support their employees on the floor. They believed that by addressing language barriers, they could foster better relationships and empower employees to share their insights with management. In return, this company has experienced incredible employee loyalty. Many of their employees have worked there for 17+ years, and there’s been an increase in employee referrals.

This type of employee tenure is only possible when growth opportunities are regularly available. We have incredibly knowledgeable and passionate workers on shop floors who are missing out on the opportunity to excel due to language barriers. Between the inability to accurately convey new ideas and the time lost to translation needs, bilingual and LEP workers are losing out on growth opportunities. It’s not just a missed opportunity for employees, but companies as well.

Technology-Driven Translation for Shop Floor Workers

While manufacturers have embarrassed digitalization in many areas, implementing effective and robust communication tools onto shop floors must be a priority in 2025. Especially for those who still rely on traditional two-way radios or personal smartphones for team communications. With new technologies such as cloud communications platforms with nationwide range, and wearable devices that support 31 languages and accurately convey tone and urgency, language barriers can quickly become a thing of the past.

The right translation tool can also offer enhanced operational visibility. From enabling teams to monitor each other’s progress to monitoring safety workflows, managers have the opportunity to essentially be in several places at once without constant interruptions.

Building a Safer, More Efficient Future

While language barriers are common in manufacturing, their costs are no longer hidden, nor do they need to affect the productivity, safety, and efficiency of operations. Investment in new technologies will not only improve productivity, but empower employees by offering growth opportunities not previously available to them.

A well-connected workforce is a key pillar of operational success, and I encourage you to explore innovative solutions to ensure that each of your workers is connected, informed, and able to collaborate with their team. Believe me, it’s an unforgettable experience witnessing how live-translation software can excite and energize every worker on your shop floor.

About the Author:
Chris Chuang is the co-founder and CEO of Relay and has 25 years of experience in the technology and telecom industries.  Prior to starting Relay, Chris was CEO of Republic Wireless, which he also co-founded as a business unit within Bandwidth (ticker: BAND).  Chris and team scaled Republic from 0 to ~$100M in annual revenue, drove it to profitability, and later sold it to DISH in 2021, using those funds to fuel the launch of Relay.  Before Republic, Chris held various leadership positions at Bandwidth, including Chief Strategy & Product Officer and Chief Operating Officer.  During his tenure, Bandwidth scaled from tens of millions to hundreds of millions of revenue. Before joining Bandwidth, Chris served as VP of Strategic Development for Motricity, an early app store technology platform powering billions of content/ app transactions for the major mobile carriers. Chris helped Motricity raise hundreds of millions of capital from leading investors and scale annual revenues from ~$10M to $100M, enabling Motricity to go public and reach a market cap of over $1 billion. Earlier in his career, Chris was a venture capital investor at Technology Crossover Ventures, a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, and investment banker at Morgan Stanley. Chris is a graduate of Stanford University and resides in North Carolina with his wife and four children.

Read more from the author:

I built a successful tech company while maintaining work-life balance, by leaving Silicon Valley | Fast Company, May 11, 2019

The Last Word With… Chris Chuang, Relay | Security Journals America, June 21, 2024

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