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                                                                    EXHIBIT 4(a)


                              EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT


       THIS AGREEMENT made as of this 30th day of May 1997, by and between Jack
Bell of 610 Carnation, Corona Del Mar, CA 92625 ("Executive") and Survivair,
Inc., a corporation organized under the laws of Connecticut (the "Company").

                              W I T N E S S E T H :

       WHEREAS, Bacou USA, Inc. has entered into an agreement to purchase the
company and desires to clarify the terms and conditions which Executive shall
continue to be employed by the company; and

       WHEREAS, Company wishes to secure the services of Executive as President
and Chief Executive Officer for the period provided in this Agreement; and

       WHEREAS, Executive is willing to enter into this Agreement for such
period and on the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth;

       NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises herein contained,
Company and Executive hereby agree as follows:

       1.    EMPLOYMENT. During the period of employment set forth in Section 2
of this Agreement, Company shall employ Executive, and Executive shall serve as
President and Chief Executive Officer of Company. Executive agrees to faithfully
perform the duties assigned to him to the best of his ability and, except for
vacations and periods of temporary illness, to devote his full time and
attention to the business of Company. Ancillary employment such as writing,
teaching or lecturing, as well as the acceptance of honorific titles may be
undertaken by the Executive only with the approval of the Chief Executive
Officer of Bacou USA, Inc. or his designee ("Chairman"). Executive also agrees
that he will not engage in any other business activities without the prior
approval of the Chairman. Executive may only serve as an officer, director,
trustee or committee member, or in any similar position, of a reasonable number
(maximum two) of trade associations and religious, charitable, educational,
civic or other non-business organizations, subject to the approval of the
Chairman. The Executive represents and warrants to Company that he is now under
no contract or agreement nor will he execute any contract or agreement that will
in any manner interfere, conflict with or prevent him from performing his duties
under the terms and conditions of this Agreement, recognizing that his
performance hereunder will require the devotion of his full time and attention
during and beyond regular business hours during the Term (as hereinafter
defined), including extensive travel.

       2.    PERIOD OF EMPLOYMENT. This Agreement shall become effective upon
the closing of the transaction in which Bacou USA, Inc. become the direct or
indirect owner of the Company and its terms shall be retroactively applicable to
the first day of the Initial Term, as defined herein. The Executive's employment
under this Agreement shall initially cover the period January 1, 1997 to
December 31, 1998 (the "Initial Term"). On December 31, 1998, and at the end of
each year thereafter, the period of employment shall be automatically extended,
without further action by either party, for successive one year periods (each a
"Renewal Term") unless at least six months prior to the end of any Term either
party shall have served written notice on the other of its election to allow
this Agreement to terminate at the end of such Term. The Initial Term and any
Renewal Terms are hereinafter sometimes collectively referred to as the "Term."


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       If either party notifies the other party that it shall not extend the
period of employment, Company may, at its option, decide that the Executive
shall take a leave-of-absence for part or all of the remaining time of his
employment, continuing to receive all compensation as if actively working.

       3.    TERMINATION. The period of employment shall be terminated upon the
first to occur of the following:

       (i)   The expiration of the period of employment pursuant to Section 2 of
             this Agreement.

       (ii)  The Executive's death.

       (iii) The Executive becoming permanently disabled. Permanent disability
             shall mean physical or mental incapacity of a nature which prevents
             Executive from performing his duties under this Agreement for a
             period of more than six months in any twelve month period.

       (iv)  The Executive's employment being terminated by Company for cause.
             Termination for cause shall mean termination by action of the Board
             of Directors of Company because of the willful failure of Executive
             to perform his duties and obligations under this Agreement or
             failure to execute in a reasonable and responsible manner the
             policies of Company or gross negligence in the performance of his
             duties under this Agreement or the commission by Executive of a
             felony.

       4.    COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS.

             (a) The Executive shall receive regular compensation (the "Base
Salary") at the initial rate per annum of One Hundred Fifty-Five Thousand
Dollars ($155,000.00) per annum for the Initial Term. The Base Salary shall be
payable in arrears less the usual payroll deductions at the same times and in
the same manner as salaries paid to other employees of the Company. The
Executive shall participate in any wage increases applicable generally to
salaried employees of Company. The Base Salary prevailing at any time shall be
reviewed annually for a possible increase beginning in January 1998.

             (b) In addition to the Base Salary, the Executive shall be entitled
to receive annual incentive compensation payments ("Incentive Compensation") at
such times and in such amounts as may be determined pursuant to the Bonus Plan
for Executives of subsidiaries of Bacou USA, Inc., as in effect for the
applicable year. Executive acknowledges that, by agreeing to participate in the
Bonus Plan for subsidiaries of Bacou USA, Inc. he thereby waives any rights to
participate in any other incentive compensation plan of the Company.

             (c) Incentive Compensation shall be paid by Company for the prior
fiscal year within ten (10) days after a decision is made by the Board of
Directors of Company as to the amount of such Incentive Compensation, but in any
event no later than the earlier of the annual meeting of the Board of Directors
of Company or March 31.

             (d) The Executive shall be entitled to participate in any stock
option plan which Bacou USA, Inc. may adopt for Company at levels to be
determined by the Board of Directors of Company in


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their sole discretion. In connection with the execution of this Agreement and
subject to the execution of the Stock Option Agreement attached hereto as
Exhibit A, Executive shall be granted options to purchase 15,000 shares of
common stock of Bacou at a per share price equal to the closing price on the
trading day immediately preceding the date on which he executes this Agreement.

             (e) The Executive shall be entitled to participate in all savings,
thrift, retirement or pension, short term and long term disability, health and
accident, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Major Medical or other hospitalization,
holiday, vacation, and other fringe benefit programs generally available to
senior executives of Company in accordance with and subject to the terms and
conditions of such programs.

             (f) In addition, the Executive shall be entitled to receive the
following benefits:

             (i) The Executive shall have the use of a company car, subject to
the Automobile Policy of Bacou USA, Inc.

                 (ii) The Executive shall be entitled to vacation pursuant to
the Bacou USA, Inc. Executive Vacation Policy. Vacation days will be taken at a
time convenient for both the Executive and Company. To the extent the Executive
does not take all vacation days the remaining days will be carried forward for
an unlimited period or be paid to the Executive at the level of his Base Salary
valid for the fiscal year in which vacation days are not taken.

                 (iii) When traveling on Company business, the Executive will be
provided coach-class airfare on domestic trips; business class airfare will be
provided on international trips.

                 (iv) The Executive is authorized to incur reasonable expenses
in connection with and for the promotion of the business of Company, including
expenses for meals and lodging (regular hotel room, no suites), entertainment,
and similar items as required from time to time by the Executive's duties.
Company shall reimburse the Executive for all such expenses upon the
presentation of an account therefor, together with appropriate supporting
documentation.

       5.    LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORITY. Pursuant to the Bylaws of Company, the
Executive and the Chairman of the Board of Directors or his designee shall
constitute the Executive Committee of the Board. Except as otherwise provided
herein, approval by the Chairman or the Executive Vice President of Bacou must
be obtained prior to the Executive taking any of the following actions on behalf
of the Company:

             (a) Acquisition or disposition of real property or any rights
                 deriving therefrom, or changing title in any such real
                 property.

             (b) Making unplanned capital expenditures or any commitment
                 therefore in an amount greater than $5,000 for any individual
                 expenditure and $50,000 in the aggregate in any fiscal year;

             (c) Borrowing or guaranteeing any borrowings from or on behalf of
                 any party, or altering the terms of any loan agreements for
                 such borrowings except for any such loans or borrowings as
                 shall be agreed upon by the Board of Directors of Company;



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             (d) Hiring or terminating executive personnel with annual salary in
                 excess of $50,000;

             (e) Granting retirement benefits or other non-earned income to any
                 individual which is not available to all employees;

             (f) Modification of any qualified plan or other benefit plan, e.g.,
                 health insurance;

             (g) Acquiring the assets or shares of another Company or
                 partnership;

             (h) Acquiring or disposing of the assets or shares of the Company
                 or selling any fixed asset of the Company below book value;

             (i) Entering into or terminating agreements of any kind or nature
                 with a monthly financial obligation in excess of U.S. $5,000
                 for more than six (6) months except purchase orders for
                 materials required for the manufacture of products for sale in
                 the ordinary course of business;

             (j) Making basic changes in the administration, organization,
                 production, and distribution of Company or any of its
                 affiliates, as well as closing or curtailing the functions of
                 Company or any of its affiliates;

             (k) Filing any lawsuit;

             (l) Making cash or non-cash corporate contributions above the
                 annually budgeted amount;

             (m) When there is a large volume of sales, the making of decisions
                 requiring both extraordinary risks and extraordinary
                 expenditures;

             (n) Entering into any transaction on behalf of Company or its
                 affiliates which is not in the usual course of its business;

             (o) Adoption or modification of the annual budget.

       Notwithstanding the foregoing, approval is not required for any action
provided for in the approved and applicable annual budget or annual plan of
Company. In addition, should the Chairman or Executive Vice President be
unavailable, if an emergency arises which requires the Executive to take
immediate action in which approval as set forth in this Section would otherwise
be required, the Executive is no longer bound by the limitations described above
and is authorized to make a decision in the best interests of Company. The
Executive will immediately inform the Chairman and the Executive Vice President
of Bacou USA, Inc. of any such decisions made by him.

       6.    NON-DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION. It is understood that the business
of Company and its affiliates is of a confidential nature. During the period of
the Executive's employment with Company, the Executive may have received and/or
may secure confidential information concerning Company or any of Company's
affiliates or subsidiaries which, if known to competitors thereof, would damage


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Company or its said affiliates or subsidiaries. The Executive agrees that during
and after the term of this Agreement he will not (except as authorized by
Company or in the proper performance of his duties or except as ordered by a
court or other body of competent jurisdiction or as otherwise required by law),
directly or indirectly, divulge, disclose or appropriate to his own use, or to
the use of any third party, any secret, proprietary or confidential information
or knowledge obtained by him during the term hereof concerning such confidential
matters of Company or its subsidiaries or affiliates, including, but not limited
to, information pertaining to trade secrets, systems, manuals, confidential
reports, methods, processes, designs, equipment lists, operating procedures,
equipment and methods used and preferred by Company's customers. Upon
termination of this Agreement, the Executive shall promptly deliver to Company
all materials of a secret or confidential nature relating to the business of
Company or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates which are, directly or
indirectly, in the possession or under the control of the Executive. The
provisions of this paragraph shall continue to apply after the Executive ceases
to be employed by Company for a period of three (3) years except in respect of
any information or knowledge disclosed to the public, other than through an
unauthorized disclosure by the Executive.

       7.    TRADE SECRETS. The Executive covenants that he shall, while
employed by Company, assign, transfer, and set over to Company or its designee
all right, title and interest in and to all trade secrets, secret processes,
inventions, improvements, patents, patent applications, trademarks, trademark
applications, copyrights, copyright registrations, discoveries and/or other
developments (hereinafter "Inventions") which he may, thereafter, alone or in
conjunction with others, during or outside normal working hours, conceive, make,
acquire or suggest at any time which relate to the products, processes, work,
research, or other activities of Company or any of its subsidiaries or
affiliates. Any and all Inventions which are of a proprietary nature and which
the Executive may conceive, may acquire or suggest, either alone or in
conjunction with others, during his employment with Company (whether during or
outside normal working hours) relating to or in any way pertaining to or
connected with Company's business, shall be the sole and exclusive property of
Company or its designee and the Executive, whenever requested to do so by
Company, shall, without further compensation or consideration properly execute
any and all applications, assignments or other documents which Company or its
designee shall deem necessary in order to apply for and obtain Letters Patent of
the United States and/or comparable rights afforded by foreign countries for the
Inventions, or in order to assign and convey to Company or its designee the sole
and exclusive right, title and interest in and to the Inventions. This
obligation shall continue beyond the termination of this Agreement with respect
to Inventions conceived or made by the Executive during the term of his
employment by Company, and shall be binding upon his assigns, executors,
administrators, and other legal representatives.

       8.    NON-COMPETITION. (a) During the term of this Agreement or any
renewal thereof and, at Company's option for a period of up to one year
thereafter, should the Executive's contract be terminated or not be renewed, the
Executive agrees that he will not within the geographical area of the United
States, engage, either directly or indirectly, individually or as an owner,
partner, joint venturer, employee, officer, director, stockholder, consultant,
independent contractor or lender of or to any corporation, holding Company or
other business entity which is in a business similar to that of Company or any
of its affiliates. In the event that Company chooses to exercise its option to
prevent the Executive from competing with Company following termination or
non-renewal of his employment, Company shall notify the Executive in writing
within two (2) weeks following his last day of employment or within two (2)
weeks of notice by Company of its decision that the Executive shall take a
leave-of-absence, in either case specifying the period of up to one year
following


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termination, resignation, or non-renewal of employment during which such
competitive activity shall be prohibited. In the event Company exercises its
option, Company shall continue to pay Executive his Base Salary at the time of
termination, resignation or non-renewal for the period during which the
Executive is prohibited from competition with Company. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, the Executive (as hereinbefore described in Section 2(d)) may own
five (5%) percent of the securities of any business in competition with the
business of Company or any of its affiliates, which securities are regularly
traded on a public exchange, provided that any such ownership shall not result
in the Executive becoming a record or beneficial owner at any time of more than
five (5%) percent of equity securities of said business entity.

             (b) The Executive shall not during the term of his Employment under
this Agreement or any renewal thereof, and for a period of one (3) years
thereafter, employ, retain or arrange to have any other person or entity employ
or retain any person who was employed by Company or any of its affiliated
companies having an annual compensation of at least U.S. $50,000 per annum
during the term of this Agreement or any renewal thereof.

             (c) If any provision of this Section is held to be unenforceable
because of the scope, duration or area of its applicability or otherwise, the
legal entity making that determination will have the power to modify the scope,
duration or area, or all of them, and the provision will then apply in its
modified form.

       9.    PROPERTY. All letters, memoranda, documents, business notes
(including all copies thereof) and other information contained on any other
computer media including computer disks and hard drives of the Executive in any
manner relating to the duties of Executive under this agreement are the property
of Company.

         10. NOTICES. Any notices or other communications required to be given
pursuant to this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed given: (i)
upon delivery, if by hand; (ii) three (3) business days after mailing, if sent
by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested;
(iii) one (1) business day after mailing, if sent via overnight courier; or (iv)
upon transmission, if sent by telex or facsimile except that if such notice or
other communication is received by telex or facsimile after 5:00 p.m. on a
business day at the place of receipt, it shall be effective as of the following
business day. All notices and other communications hereunder shall be given as
follows:

             (a) If to the Company, to it at:

                 Bacou USA, Inc..
                 10 Thurber Boulevard
                 Smithfield, RI 02917
                 Attention:  President

                 Telephone No.:  401-233-0333
                 Telecopier No.: 401-232-2230



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                 with a copy to:

                   Edwards & Angell
                   2700 Hospital Trust Tower
                   Providence, Rhode Island  02903
                   Attention:  Susan A. Keller, Esq.
                   Telephone No.:  (401) 274-9200
                   Telecopier No.: (401) 276-6611

             (b) If to the Executive, to him at:

                   610 Carnation
                   Corona Del Mar, CA  92625

                   Telephone No.: 714-673-4323

                 with a copy to:




                   Telephone No.:  (        )
                   Telecopier No.: (        )

Any party may change its address for receiving notice by written notice given to
the other names above in the manner provided above.

       11.   FULL AND COMPLETE AGREEMENT; AMENDMENT. This Agreement constitutes
the full and complete understanding and agreement of the parties and supersedes
all prior understandings and agreements. This Agreement may be modified only by
a written instrument executed by both parties.

       12.   CONSTRUCTION. This Agreement shall be construed under the laws of
the State of California.

       13.   ARBITRATION. Notwithstanding the fact that the parties shall be
entitled to equitable relief in order to enforce certain provisions hereunder
(e.g., temporary restraining orders or injunctive relief), any dispute,
controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this Agreement, or the breach
hereof, shall be settled by arbitration in accordance with the "Commercial
Arbitration Rules" of the American Arbitration Association in effect on the date
of this Agreement, except as varied below. The site of any such arbitration
shall be Providence, Rhode Island and any award shall be deemed to be a
Providence, Rhode Island award. There shall be a single arbitrator who shall be
admitted to practice law in Rhode Island, with no less than ten (10) years
experience in the handling of commercial or corporate matters or disputes. The
arbitrator shall render a written decision stating his reasons therefor, and
shall render an award within six (6) months of the request for arbitration, and
such award shall be final and binding upon both parties. Judgment upon the award
rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction
in any state of the United States or country or application may be made to such
court for a judicial acceptance of the award and an enforcement, as the law of
such jurisdiction may require or allow. The substantive law to be applied to any
case



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determined pursuant to this Section 13 is that of State of Rhode Island. The
expense of arbitration shall be borne by the respective parties except to the
extent that the arbitrators shall determine that the entire expense shall be
borne by a single party.

       14.   BINDING NATURE. This Agreement shall be binding upon and shall
inure to the benefit of the parties and their respective heirs, personal
representatives, successors and assigns.

       IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Company and the Executive have duly executed this
Agreement as of the day and year first written above.

SURVIVAIR, INC.


By: /s/ Walter Stepan
    --------------------------

Title: Chairman



EXECUTIVE:


/s/ Jack Bell
------------------------------



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