Scribbling #18: The Workplace Handshake

Something that I have been treated to is the male-to-male handshake, possibly the most polite greeting you can give to someone at work.  This is, to me, impressive, as this has never happened in the UK, unless we are just about to go on holiday for a long time (e.g. Christmas), you've just completed one full year at your workplace, or its your birthday/anniversary.  In the Slovak workplace, at least on the shop floor if not the offices, this happens every day.  It is remarkable and it feels more personal, since for at least a couple of moments the shaker and the shakee were important to each other, that we are all in this together, that we share work-related problems on a regular basis.

To most people, this is a small, even inconsequential thing.  I don't think it is, as I find that although the people here can share problems, it is always at a distance and never 'full on', as other cultures can give it to you.  In the workplace, UK men are especially ones for gossip and sharing personal problems if you even hint at using the words 'something the matter?'.  I've listened politely to such issues as a death in the family, dealing with drugs and dealing drugs back in the '60s, going through three marriages, the CSA, how it is nearly impossible to get a decent job in Poland, what gigs they went to at the weekend, etcetera, etcetera... Here it takes time, as trust is always a big issue and so thus always a rather tall hurdle to negotiate.  Language is also a 'slight' barrier to leap over, but the message usually gets across.  With pictures.  And whooshing sounds.  And mime.  Eventually the door cracks open just enough to peek in, then it shuts quickly again, in your best interest of course.

Slovak people also notice if you are particularly pro-active.  They may not say about it to you, but they will say it to each other and it will be remembered then joked about later.  Especially if it happens to be about such aspects as health and safety. During my first days, I wanted to know where to throw broken knife shards away, as putting it in the normal rubbish will endanger the cleaner to nasty cuts and scratches.  Finding that there wasn't any such place... well, just picture myself and one of the women from the office dragging an empty oil barrel across the shop floor and then asking one of the guys from the toolroom to cut it in half so that we can use it to store waste metal.  Oh, the looks I got after that...  No Slovak understands the need for rudimentary H&S and it is only being implemented now so that businesses have more of a foothold for foreign investment.  This includes such items as fire safety, recycling, trips, drops and falls and so on.

So, that's what I get from a handshake.  You have been warned...