Should Employees Be Required to Speak English on the Job?

Everyone has to follow the companies' policies and rules while they are on duty. Everyone that comes to the United States have to learn the official language of the country, which is American English. When it comes to working in a foreign country, one always has to follow the guidelines and requirements that are needed to land the desired position, especially in the US. Residents and citizens of the United States of America have the privilege to have foreigners of other countries to come to share their cultures with ours. But what happens when employees desire to use their foreign language rather than speaking English at work. Most companies require prospect employees to be bilingual in order for them to get hired for the bilingual positions that the employers have to offer. There are much diversity in this country, and to make things equal and fair, employees are required to speak only English at work. Although, some jobs do not require prospect employees to speak a foreign language, it is always a plus to know an additional language. Some jobs offer additional bonus for the additional language that the employees speak. There will always be a differential pay for those that are bilingual in this country.

According to Spencer H. Lewis from Kurzon's article, "employers should carefully scrutinize their English-only policies and English fluency requirements to ensure they are not discriminating against employees on the basis of national origin." Not everyone agrees with the fact that English should be the only language that has to be spoken white at work. Because one feels comfortable speaking their native home language at work, one needs to be careful when they speak their native language in from of everyone. Some people may get offended when English is not spoken during work business hours because they might think that somebody is talking behind their backs in the native language. According to Carrie Kurzon's article, two Hispanic employees of The Salvation Army were fired because they did not speak English while at work, when they were required to.

One of the advantages of speaking English while on duty is that it contributes to a better communication with everyone that one encounters in the company. According to research, speaking one universal language (English) at work helps to avoid miscommunication among third party, coworkers and other employees of the company. Speaking one universal language at work, it helps others to understand what is going on at that very moment, instead, of translating back and forth for those who were included on the conversation. Speaking English at work shows a sign of respect to others and to the company itself. People may not feel comfortable and they may feel weird, when someone starts speaking in their home native language. Because it looks like someone is talking behind their back without them knowing what is going on. Also, speaking a different language at work creates a sensation of anxiety on those surrounded by the unknown language. Managers and supervisors might give a warning to those employees that are communicating in their home native language during work, when they are not allowed to do that. On the other hand, there are other groups of people that have no idea how much they can affect the business industry that they are working on, by not knowing the language and not able for them to communicate in English, when they are supposed to know the language if they want to be hired for a XYZ company. According to blogger Marissa Trevino, "most businesses benefit by employing Englishspeakers for many reasons, a tax break might be just the push reluctant employers need to support ESL classes. Rep. Mike Honda, D-Calif., recently re-introduced legislation that would give businesses tax breaks if they offer ESL classes. For a good model to follow, the restaurant industry is credited with spearheading efforts to develop such classes onsite." As we know, there are minority groups that take a little bit longer to learn a second language nowadays. Some people do not realize that learning English can be frustrating for some people and that is the reason why they would rather speak their home language at home than English. Most people are busy with their lifestyle and they are okay with not having to learn the language, because they are not going to move up to an upper level position. According to Trevino, some smart companies cannot file a lawsuit if an employee refuses to speak English at work. They cannot discriminate an employee from getting hired neither because English is not their first language. Most companies are very hesitant to hire new bilingual employees, because they can lean forward to having a tendency to speak their home language while at work. They might be hesitant if the prospect candidate has an accent and does not have a pleasant American accent. Because most employers or managers think that those who learn English as a second language do not have the talent to communicate effectively with their customers due to their language barriers. Managers have the idea that the first language will always be predominant in somebody's life and that can affect the way how someone does business with their future customers.

According to Trevino, "a case in Dallas brings this point home. TV station WFAA found that hundreds of low-level commercial aircraft mechanics in Texas had the necessary skill set for the job, but they lacked the language skills to communicate with supervisors or to read repair manuals. The report prompted Congress to demand that by March, the Federal Aviation Administration require all mechanics to be proficient in English." As one can see on the Trevino's statement, there is no other option for employees than to speak and know how read, write English at work to be able to survive on their job position. It is not a choice when it comes to debate whether English should be spoken at work or not. Managers do not want to lose business by hiring employees that do not want to speak the language, or do not know how to speak the language. Unfortunately, there are places where employees do not know how to speak the language and they are forced to speak whatever their English sounds like to be able to earn a paycheck in this tough economy. They can convince their employers that they can handle the language, but it comes to real situation they do not know what to do at the end of the tunnel. Sadly, most customers do not say anything about the situation and what they do, they would go to somewhere else that have better communication skills and offer a similar product that XYZ company offers. Therefore, companies and businesses lose business due to the lack of ability to be able to communicate in English. Most companies would prefer to hire English speakers employees and pay them at a lower rate, than risking their business with someone that has not clue or do not understand the customers' needs because of the culture differences. According to Casale, "with more people entering the workforce with only rudimentary English skills and, in some cases, poor literacy levels in their native languages, employers must adapt their wellness communications strategies, they say. More than 24 million people in the United States speak English less than "very well," according to 2007 U.S. Census Bureau statistics, and the percentage of those in this category is expected to increase in double-digit increments over the next several years. Of the more than 278 million people who live in the United States, 33.7 million speak Spanish, while more than 10.2 million speak another European language and more than 8.1 million speak a language of Asian origin."

Nevertheless, there are places where speaking English is a requirement on the job place. For instance, food service industry has the biggest issue on having their employees to speak English at work. Because restaurant positions are very simple, easy to learn and require little or basic English in some area of the state, employees care less if they speak English at work or not. This is the reason why McDonald created the twenty-two weeks ESL program for those entering into the entry management positions. As long the employees learn the basic and necessary knowledge of the position, it is not necessary for them to know perfect English. Their whole point of view is that they need basic English to be able to serve the customer's meals and it is not a sale position where they have to explain the products to be able to close the sale. Because most restaurants have pictures on their menu, employees do not see the need to speak that much English at work and they opt out to speak their home language when it comes to communicating with someone who speaks the same language. Another field where excellent communication skills are required would be the customer service field. Most bilingual employees think that it is okay to use their native language at work because they understand and speak it better than their second language. This problem not only creates inconsistency at work, it also opens door to laziness and habits into the working environment. The employees might think that there is no need to speak English, because the language is not important or irrelevant to their position. On the other hand, the hospitality field and tourism field might suffer a little bit on their sales if employees do not know how to communicate with their guests due to the language barriers. Most visitors are not that fluent in English and imagine to deal with a concierge that have a hard time speaking English at work, then the company suffers the consequence at the end of the day. Sales may decline by not wanting to speak English with customers. Last, the healthcare field and education field are two different fields that require their employees to speak English all the time. According to Casale, "employees are more comfortable to discuss health issues in their native language. If they are only doing it in English, employees are not aware and not using the benefits to their advantage and, therefore, companies are not getting a return on their investment." On the education and healthcare field, employees are dealing with patients and children and having to speak English at work is not a second choice. While most employees want to discuss their health issues in their native language, working on that field will require the knowledge of the subject and speaking with patients in their natives are not allowed unless the patient granted permission. Patients will get offended when an employee speaks with them in the employee's native language. Do not put heading for conclusion

We are living in a country where freedom of speech is available, but this does not mean an employee will have the freedom to speak on their native language while at work nowadays. Using a native language can be done once the employee is off their shifts and off of the work environment. Speaking English during work it is a requirement in most jobs and it is not something that can be taken lightly. Employees need to speak English at work, so they can communicate with others effectively, and not offend anyone on the work environment.

Bibliography

www.newyorkemploymentlawyerblog.com

www.newyorkemploymentlawyerblog.com/2007/07/amendment_aimed_at_promoting_e.html#more

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