Educate employees so they know how to notify others if they discover an emergency is present:

• Explain to employees the preferred ways of reporting emergencies, such as manual pull box alarms, public address systems, radio, or telephones.
• Post the emergency telephone number(s) near telephones, or employee notice boards, and other conspicuous locations when telephones serve as a means of reporting emergencies.
• When a communication system also serves as the alarm system, all emergency messages must have priority over all non-emergency messages.

Educate employees as to the procedures for sounding alarms in the facility. If your establishment has 10 or fewer employees, direct voice communication is acceptable for sounding the alarm, provided that all employees can hear the alarm. A back-up system is not needed in these facilities.