Bakery staffed with hearing-impaired people

Staffers work in the Silent Bread Tree Bakery in Longhua District. Photos from iLonghua.com

While there always seems to be too much noise in popular restaurants and bars, a “silent bakery” in Longhua District might offer an alternative to escape the hustle and bustle and serve as a bridge to connect hearing-impaired people with customers, Shenzhen Economic Daily reported Thursday.

In the bakery, which is called Silent Bread Tree, most of the staff members are hearing impaired. A poster on the counter, which reads “We can’t hear you, but we’ll be happy to serve you,” reminds customers of the bakery’s uniqueness.

If the requests are complicated, customers can use writing tablets to communicate with the staff.

Xia Xia, 20, started working in the bakery not long ago. Her daily job is to pack freshly baked bread and clean the tables. She told the reporter with the Daily that she would soon begin to learn how to make tea drinks.

According to Zheng Xiaoyan, owner of the bakery, she met some people with hearing impairment by chance and was moved by their earnest efforts to stand on their own feet.

To support hearing-impaired people, she set up the “silent bakery” to help them have their own careers. At present, the bakery has five active employees and five trainees.

Zheng said that employees with hearing disabilities are no different from other employees in terms of professional skills. However, free from external interference, hearing-impaired employees are able to work more attentively and persistently.