Both federal and Washington state law prohibit employment discrimination based on national origin. That includes not just where a person was born, but where their parents or past generations of their family were born.
As the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) explains, national origin discrimination can be based on a person’s “actual or perceived place of birth, country of origin, ancestry, native language, accent, or because they are perceived as looking or sounding ‘foreign.’”
National origin discrimination can take many forms
Discrimination is not always as obvious as refusing to hire or promote someone because of where they were born or using slurs and insults. One common example that many people – including those affected by it – don’t recognize is requiring employees to speak English at all times in the workplace.
Employers do have the right to require employees to speak English in specified work-related circumstances. However, they can’t tell them not to speak their native (or any) language when they’re simply conversing with a co-worker on a break or talking on the phone to a friend or relative.
Unfortunately, some people can’t deal with not knowing what others are saying – even if they’re not talking to them. Managers can get particularly nervous if a group of employees is speaking to one another in another language. That doesn’t give them the right to tell these employees to “speak English” or to post signs like “English only” or “No Spanish (Mandarin, etc.)” The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has stated that a “rule requiring employees to speak only English at all times in the workplace is a burdensome term and condition of employment.”
When can employees be required to speak English?
In most workplaces here in the Seattle area, people primarily speak and write in English. Under federal law, employers can require their employees to use English when they’re:
- Working on “cooperative” projects
- Communicating with anyone whose primary language is English
- Being monitored or assessed by a supervisor or someone else
English can also be required during an emergency or a safety drill.
If an employer is requiring employees to speak English outside of the examples listed when it has no negative effect on anyone else, including co-workers, managers or customers, it is likely that they’re engaging in or at least tolerating other forms of illegal discrimination. That’s why it’s important for workers to know and be able to protect and assert their rights. If that doesn’t resolve the matter, it may be smart to get legal guidance.