Most Specified Skilled Worker fields involve machinery, vehicles, heights, heat or sharp tools. Safety instruction in Japan is constant, and it is delivered in Japanese.
This vocabulary is small, fixed and non-negotiable. Learn it before you fly, not in your first week.
Signs you will see every day
| Japanese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 危険 | Danger |
| 注意 | Caution |
| 立入禁止 | No entry |
| 使用禁止 | Do not use |
| 火気厳禁 | No open flame |
| 点検中 | Under inspection |
| 故障 | Out of order |
| 非常口 | Emergency exit |
| 消火器 | Fire extinguisher |
| 頭上注意 | Mind your head |
| 足元注意 | Mind your step |
Recognising these at a glance is a reading skill, and it is exactly what the exam’s notice-reading questions train: how to read a Japanese notice.
Protective equipment
保護具 (protective equipment) is the umbrella term. Under it:
ヘルメット, 安全靴 (safety shoes), 手袋 (gloves), 保護メガネ (safety glasses), マスク, 耳栓 (ear plugs), 安全帯 (harness).
The instruction you will hear: ～を着用してください - please wear ~.
Shouted words
These are the ones that matter in the moment, and they are usually single words:
- 危ない！ - Dangerous! Look out!
- 止めて！ - Stop it! (the machine)
- 待って！ - Wait!
- 下がって！ - Get back!
- 来て！ - Come here!
Note that they arrive without context and over noise. This is precisely the listening skill the exam tests - catching a short instruction, including a negative: the listening section.
Reporting an incident
Three sentences worth knowing before you need them:
- けがを しました。 - I am injured / someone is injured.
- きかいが とまりました。 - The machine has stopped.
- きぶんが わるいです。 - I feel unwell.
And the rule behind them: report immediately, to your supervisor, before attempting to fix anything. Workplace culture explains why that ordering matters so much in a Japanese workplace.
The safety briefing
Most employers run statutory safety training, and in many fields it is legally required. It will be in Japanese, and it may be the most linguistically demanding thing you attend all year.
Two things help enormously:
- Ask for materials in advance if you can, and look up the words.
- Ask questions. すみません、もう一度お願いします is always acceptable, and a supervisor would far rather repeat an instruction than explain an injury.
Field-specific lists
Each sector adds its own: construction, shipbuilding, forestry, food manufacturing and manufacturing all have specific hazards and specific words.
Learn the general list above first. It transfers everywhere, and it is the part you can do today - alongside checking where your Japanese currently stands with our free exam demo.