ABSTRACT
This study examined an investigation of special language needs analysis of workplaces in Lagos State. The descriptive survey design was used to carry out the study. The population of study comprised of all the workers in all the selected industries located within Oshodi and Agege Local Government Area of Lagos State. The sample of study consisted of one-hundred and twenty (120) workers from five (5) industries located within Oshodi-Isolo Local Government Area of Lagos State. The study adopted the use of questionnaire as the instrument for data collection. The data collected were analysed using the frequency counts and simple percentage to complete the demographic data of the participants and to answer the research questions while all the research hypotheses were tested using the chi-square (x2) method at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that the special language needs of Lagos State workers are on English language communication skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing). Writing and speaking skills have been found as the most special language skills needed in the Lagos State workplaces. And that workers from Afriprint are mostly in need of training in these special language skills among others. Based on the findings of the study, the following recommendations were made by the researcher. There is need for industries to organize periodical in-service training especially in terms of their workers communication skills. Since English language is the official language in Nigeria and the major medium of communication in the midst of a multilingual population, English proficiency of workers need to be facilitated by organizing seminars and workshops aimed at enhancing workers English language skills.It is also important to conduct periodical assessment on the workers special language skills in order to ascertain the particular area of weakness and design the remedial programmes to assist the workers among others.
CHAPTER ONE
1.0INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
There is urgent need for every industry to begin to take precautionary steps towards developing the proficiency level of their employees for maximum productivity. There is a strong apprehension that the current global employability will be only for graduates who are proficient in the language needed for the job particularly in countries like Mexico, Angola,, Nigeria among others. For an establishment to continue to make productive impact on its immediate environment, there must be adequate communication skill among the workers in the workplace.
Communication is an indispensable activity in the workplace. Within industrialized nations like Nigeria; the expectation of fluency in speech is omnipresent. Understanding the interaction dynamics of the workplace is vital to a successful business enterprise. No rapid progress can be made in the absence of effective communicative skill. The success of any form of establishment is hinged on proper communication skill and the right choice of words in delivering duties in the workplace.