Workplace diversity - Multilingual Connections

Adding pictograms to translated documents

March 8, 2013 By bridget

One great resource for a multilingual workplace is using images, or pictograms, in documents. Images can be especially useful in safety manuals or policy and procedure documents, where communicating detailed information is essential to business and human resources.

Translating important information from the majority language (say English) into the minority language (Spanish, for example) is crucial to a safe and fair workplace. Using pictograms to communicate can help those with limited language skills in either the majority or minority languages.

Multilingual Connections can not only translate your workplace documents but also add pictograms to be sure that all employees understand the important communications to remain safe and content at work.

Filed Under: Business, Cultural competency, English in the Workplace, Immigrant workforce, Spanish in the Workplace, Workplace diversity

826CHI Staff Studies Spanish to Teambuild and Connect with Parents

December 10, 2012 By bridget

826CHI is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.

Many of the students that attend 826CHI writing programs come from Spanish-speaking homes. Their parents are actively involved, but the language barrier between the staff and parents was becoming a frustration.

With only one or two people on staff speaking Spanish, 826CHI was not fully supporting its parent group. When a Spanish-speaker would call the office, many times the person who answered would be at a loss. “I’m sorry, the person who speaks Spanish isn’t here right now.”

Executive Director Barry Benson suggested that the 826CHI staff learn Spanish. Not only would staff be able to communicate with Spanish-speaking parents, they could create stronger relationships with each other through team building.

Benson set up Spanish classes with Multilingual Connections. 826CHI staff attend class for one hour per week at either the beginner or intermediate level.

At first, Benson thought that with everyone’s diverse schedules, choosing a good time for classes would be difficult, and interest would fade. To Benson’s delight the Spanish classes, which began last May, have a 100% participation rate. 826CHI staff find their Spanish instruction so important that they schedule around the class time. Even the board president attends classes!

Benson says every day is a success story, and is thrilled with the results. “It’s gone beyond being a smart investment. We’re improving morale and getting to know each other.”

Multilingual Connections classes always teach language within culture, and the 826CHI staff have plenty of student work to practice from. The group recently translated a complete “I Wish” story written by a fifth-grader. Here is a sample sentence:

“If I could do anything, I would go on a date with Justin Bieber. We would go to Golden Corral and we would talk about our deepest feelings and our hobbies.”

Not only did they learn useful vocabulary that their Spanish-speaking students might use, that sentence gave the class a chance to practice the conditional and subjunctive tenses!

826CHI recently received an award from the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago honoring their work with Spanish-speaking communities at Global Latino Fest in October. The language studies were part of that recognition.

What’s next for Spanish instruction at 826CHI? Benson would love to extend Spanish lessons to their dozen or so interns. Learning Spanish would not only boost their marketable skill set, it would be a way for the non-profit to reward them for their hard work.

We at Multilingual Connections would love our friends and fans to get involved with this cutting-edge group of writers and educators. 826CHI sports an innovative and lively volunteer program populated by creative individuals. “People who volunteer at 826CHI come here as much for the enjoyment as they do to give back,” says Benson. Volunteers can tutor after school, run workshops and field trips, and even just help in the office with administrative support.

Multilingual Connections applauds 826CHI for embracing the challenge of bilingualism in the workplace. We are so proud to share this success story!

If your workplace is looking for language instruction – in Spanish, English, or any of our 18+ languages, contact Multilingual Connections so we can begin designing a custom language learning curriculum for your business.

Filed Under: Chicago, Cultural competency, Spanish, Spanish in the Workplace, Workplace diversity

Forbes Magazine’s case for “Why Your Next CEO Shouldn’t Be American”

November 19, 2012 By bridget

After reading the recent University of Chicago study on how people behave more rationally when they think in another language, Forbes contributor Roger Dooley published an argument against companies continuing to hire English-only speakers as their CEOs. Read the complete article: “Why Your Next CEO Shouldn’t be American.”

Dooley contends that the average CEO relies too much upon emotion and less upon rationality when making decisions. Knowingly or not, this behavior can be to the detriment of the business.

“Management blunders are often caused by behavior that is less than rational. Executives protect pet projects, stick with strategies that are clearly failing, become swept up in passing fads, or can’t bring themselves to make difficult personnel changes – all irrational and emotion-driven decisions,” says Dooley.

Bilingual CEOs could exercise their rationality by working through problems in a second language. Making the choice to think rationally could help CEOs make tough decisions that benefit the business. Which leads us at Multilingual Connections to wonder if a company culture that encourages multilingual hires, under the leadership of a multilingual CEO, would lead to more rational problem solving throughout the workforce.

Though language shouldn’t become the primary criterion in hiring, Dooley hopes these findings will make hiring managers and boards of directors less likely to dismiss multilingual candidates based on “negative concerns… like cultural differences or lack of subtlety in English.”

A believer in the rationality study, Dooley suggests bilingual CEOs attempt to problem-solve in their secondary language(s). “Read background material and briefings in that language, and outline your choices in the same way. By forcing your thought process into a language foreign to you, you will take at least some of the emotion and bias out of the decision process.” That way, CEOs can make reliably decisions that benefit their business in an unbiased way.

Filed Under: Business, Workplace diversity

Language in the Multilingual Workplace

September 16, 2012 By bridget

In today’s multilingual and multicultural workplace, issues of language exclusion are hot as ever. A prime example is this story out of Norway, where a Polish hospital worker was fired for speaking Polish on her unpaid lunch break.

She was fired because she failed to heed a policy of Sykehuset Telemark hospital that forbids the speaking of any language other than Norwegian in the hospital, during working hours and on breaks. That means that immigrant workers, who may share a common, native language, must speak to one another in a secondary language, or they will lose their jobs.

The hospital believes that speaking languages other than Norwegian leads to a “bad working environment.”

We all understand the value of using a shared language in the workplace, to foster communication especially related to business and safety. That is why many of our clients seek out our Workplace English as a Second Language classes. When English is the majority language, employers understand the importance, and the benefits, of all employees understanding a common language better.

But we also understand the value of cultural competency in the workplace. About creating a confident workforce based on mutual respect. That means respecting language disparities by providing translation when necessary, and respecting workers’ rights to engage in workplace-appropriate conversations with their colleagues in their native, comfortable language. An employee that feels respected at work will likely become a more valuable, long-term member of the team.

Does Sykehuset Telemark hospital have the right to create its own policies regarding language and behavior at the workplace? As long as those policies follow local laws, then of course it does. However, if the hospital is trying to create the “good working environment” it intends, it would benefit them to think of how language policies affect every stakeholder at that hospital.

Learn more about cultural competency in previous Multilingual Connections blog posts.

Filed Under: Business, Cultural competency, Immigrant workforce, Workplace diversity

Spanish and Major League Baseball

June 14, 2012 By bridget

On opening day 2010, 28.3 percent of Major League baseball players were Latino, and that number is likely even larger today. Many of those players are native Spanish speakers that require translation of important documents like benefits descriptions and changes to Major League Baseball rules and regulations.

Multilingual Connections is proud to be the translation partner to the MLB Players Association, and to help provide this vital service to players. We translate documents from memos to press releases, rules against chewing tobacco use, files describing the differences between the Minors and the Majors when a player gets The Call (or is sent back down) and beyond. Most of us don’t realize the intricacies of working as a baseball player, especially when English is your second language – it’s definitely more complicated than keeping a high batting average!

One thing we’ve had to keep up on are team name translations. We like to read Spanish language newspapers and watch games on Univision to hear to how commentators and fans refer to the teams.

Some team names are easy to translate:

Chicago Cubs = Cachorros de Chicago

Chicago White Sox = Medias Blancas de Chicago (As Chicagoans, we had to list them both…)

Some translations seem to serve the team better than the English name:

San Francisco Giants = Gigantes de San Francisco

Texas Rangers = Vigilantes de Texas

Some are quite literal translations:

Milwaukee Brewers = Cerveceros de Milwaukee (beermakers)

Some aren’t quite translatable:

Philadelphia Phillies = Phillies de Filadelfia (a Philly being a person from Philadelphia)

York New York Yankees = Yanquis de Nueva York (just a spelling change)

And some don’t require translation at all:

San Deigo Padres = Padres de San Diego

Perhaps our favorite translation, though…

…is for the Toronto Blue Jays. In Spanish, they are called los Azulejos, which is the name of the bird, but also the name for these beautiful painted tiles. Toronto Tiles has a bit of a ring to it!

On the fans’ side, it’s estimated that Latinos are 27% more likely to be baseball fans than the rest of the U.S. population. There is a Spanish language version of MLB.com: visit LasMayores.com. From there, you can find Spanish pages for every team (equipo) in the league. ¡Viva las Mayores!

Filed Under: Latino, Spanish, Translation, Workplace diversity

What Identity means to Latinos in America

June 7, 2012 By bridget

As a language translation agency, we’re intrigued by cultural identity studies, particularly among those cultures whose languages we translate. Recent research conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center shows that even though American Latinos are united by a common heritage language, they are divided on cultural labels. In fact, 69% of those polled say they do not share a common culture among other Latinos/Hispanics.

Some interesting findings:

Hispanic vs. Latino: 51% of those polled had no preference on the term, however when the preference is expressed, “Hispanic” comes in at 33% over “Latino” at 14%.

Cultural identity – not as clear cut as some might think: 51% say that most often they use their family’s country of origin to describe their identity. That includes such terms as “Mexican” or “Cuban” or “Dominican,” for example.

Regarding language: 38% of all respondents identify as Spanish-dominant, 38% are bilingual and 24% are English-dominant. Among those born in the United States, 51% are English-dominant.

- 87% believe English language skills are essential for successful life in the U.S.

- 95% believe preserving Spanish language skills for future generations is important

What does this all mean to us? The U.S. Census predicts that Latinos will be the largest minority population by 2050, and Spanish will continue to be a major language in this country. It’s going to be increasingly important for businesses to prepare for an even greater influx of this demographic, that, if not bound by cultural identity, is bound by a common heritage language.

Here’s a great article from HispanicBusiness.com that summarizes the lengthy study.

Filed Under: Demographics, Latino Culture, Spanish, Workplace diversity Tagged With: bilingualism, Census, spanish, Translation

Creating a safe work environment for Hispanic employees

May 24, 2011 By jillkbishop

Last week I presented a session at the 69th Annual Wisconsin Safety & Health Conference. In the US, there are approximately 50 million Latinos – one in six Americans (and 1 in 4 children!) – and the Hispanic population accounts for over half of US population growth in the last decade. I shared some eye-opening statistics, such as the following:

14 people die every day at work.
The workplace fatality rate among Latinos is 13.5% higher than for US workers overall.
Of the 11,303 Latino workers who died from work-related injuries from 2003-2006, 34% worked in construction.

Why is the fatality rate so much higher among Latinos? For starters, Latino immigrants work in high-risk jobs, such as construction, at a higher rate than the general population. Then there’s the language barrier. Approximately 65% of low-wage immigrant workers are Limited English Proficient (LEP), and not surprisingly, OSHA estimates that over a quarter of workplace injuries are attributable to the language barrier.

But it’s not just language; it’s culture, too. Among Latino immigrants, safety is often viewed through a different lens. Back home, there are far fewer government inspections of work sites, and in the event of a violation, a bribe often makes it go away. Workers may be required to risk their safety, as workers are often perceived is dispensable. Is this in every work site? Of course not. But it’s not uncommon.

In the US, these workers often fear that a complaint about unsafe work conditions or a request for personal protective equipment would cause them to lose their job. And what about reporting workplace injuries? There is the same concern. Moreover, for undocumented workers, a fear of deportation frequently serves as further motivation to quietly self-treat injuries that should be reported and treated. There’s also the perception that safety regulations exist to protect American-born workers, who aren’t as “tough,” as well as the perception that the government doesn’t truly care about immigrant workers and their well-being.

So what can you do to improve the safety of your workplace? Some suggestions:

Ensure that safety materials are reader-friendly and translated into the language(s) of your workforce. But that’s not enough: lower levels of literacy mean that you need to be sure to then train people – in their language – to ensure that these procedures and policies are understood. This can be done by hiring an interpreter or by using a bilingual supervisor.
Consider offering job-specific English as a Second Language training. This will help improve safety, productivity and engagement, and it will also help increase your pool of internal promotion candidates.
Consider offering job-specific Spanish training (as well as other languages of your workplace). With a focus on safety expressions and other key vocabulary, your managers will significantly increase their communication skills while at the same time developing your employees’ trust.

Workplace safety is too important to cut corners. Don’t let things get lost in translation!

-Jill Kushner Bishop, PhD

Filed Under: Employment, English in the Workplace, Immigrant workforce, Latino Culture, Safety, Spanish in the Workplace, Workplace diversity

Learning the Language : Targeting the Market Means Getting Comfortable with Spanish

December 10, 2010 By admin

With more than 45 million Latinos in the United States and the Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasting the ethnic group to account for 30% of the population by 2050, Latinos are now the fastest-growing segment of the population. Restaurants are now targeting the Latino population with Spanish-language signage, marketing campaigns, translated menus and other strategies.

Filed Under: Business, Cultural competency, Employment, Spanish in the Workplace, Workplace diversity

How are immigration crackdowns affecting the restaurant industry?

September 20, 2010 By admin

Immigration reform is one the most controversial political topics today. Let’s face it: any decision made related to immigration crackdowns are going to affect our workforce, where many sectors are based on cheap, unskilled labor that immigrants provide. For better or for worse, how will these crackdowns affect the U.S. workforce?

The New York Times uses Michel Malecot as an example, who is the owner of a small French restaurant in San Diego. He was charged and indicted with charges of employing 12 illegal immigrants. If found guilty, he faces the forfeiture of his restaurant and up to $4 million in fines.

The Obama administration has been getting tough on immigration enforcement laws, which were once considered lax. This year federal employees expect to announce a record number of investigation and fines.

Taking a look at the restaurant industry, 1.4 million workers, both legal and illegal, are foreign-born. “According to 2008 estimates from the Pew Hispanic Center, about 20 percent of the nearly 2.6 million chefs, head cooks and cooks are illegal immigrants. Among the 360,000 dishwashers, 28 percent are undocumented, according to the estimates.”

While hiring illegal immigrants may be industry standard, the crackdowns are welcomed from many immigrant rights supporters, who see that illegal immigrants are underpaid and also afraid of complaining to their employers.

It can be complicated business for everyone involved. Employers don’t want the burden of policing their employees when they provide what appears to be legal paperwork, and even electronic verification systems have incorrect information that could turn away eligible workers. Many employers are now petitioning for immigration reform that makes it easier for undocumented workers to gain legal status.

Read the full NYTimes article here.

Filed Under: Business, Employment, Immigrant workforce, Immigration in the US, Politics, Workplace diversity

Koreans and Hispanics in Chicago learn to co-exist

June 2, 2010 By admin

Many Korean immigrants have recently found themselves in the Korean American Resource and Cultural Center taking classes in—what else?—Spanish. People like Sue Choe, who owns a laundromat in Koreatown, see many reasons to learn the language that many of her customers speak.

Aware of an ugly history between Korean-Americans and African-Americans–one that erupted into violence in some cities in the 1990s–Korean business owners are trying to soothe mutual suspicions with Spanish-speaking workers and customers. The effort is mostly born of an increasingly interdependent employer-employee relationship.

It is just one of the ways in which new waves of immigration and intermigration between neighborhoods is fast changing the city, mixing new combinations of ethnic groups together and forcing them to search for ways to coexist as so many previous generations of immigrants did.

Beginning a community dialogue is important, especially recalling the 1992 race riots in Los Angeles. It’s also important because Koreans and Hispanics don’t just live in the same communities, they work together too. Hispanics have become the primary labor pool for Korean business owners, and cultural differences have erupted in the workplace.

Latino workers, many earning less than the minimum wage, complain that their Korean bosses neglect to pay overtime and are often callous about days off or job-related injuries.

In turn Korean owners, at times unfamiliar with U.S. labor laws, see ingratitude and disloyalty in their employees’ complaints. They argue that their up-from-the-ground businesses are a team effort that also has the owners working long hours.

Disputes have hurt both sides. Learning to understand the cultures around you (and their languages) is a great start. Read the full Chicago Tribune article about this issue here.

Want to learn the languages spoken in your neighborhood? Visit MultilingualChicago.com to learn about language classes and workshops in your area!

Filed Under: Business, Chicago, Cultural competency, Demographics, Education, Employment, Immigrant workforce, Spanish in the Workplace, Workplace diversity