3 ms·

Speaking as a former manager, it is your manager's responsibility to enforce English only. Speaking as a non-native English speaker, working in a FAANG office

Speaking as a former manager, it is your manager's responsibility to enforce English only. Speaking as a non-native English speaker, working in a FAANG office where nearly everyone speaks a certain language that's not English, when visitors or others who don't speak the language are present, we use English exclusively. Anything else is (correctly) considered rude - there are few things less welcoming than someone speaking above your head in a language they know you don't understand. Just as an example, a colleague from a Ukrainian office is temporary working from ours, while his office and home are unavailable. In a 90-person all-hands meeting, he was the only person who doesn't speak the local language. The meeting was held in English.

toast0 4y ago
> Speaking as a former manager, it is your manager's responsibility to enforce English only. English only rules may violate (US) Federal Equal Opportunity Employment Law, so management needs to be careful to form a policy within the law and apply it within the law. Obviously, business discussions need to be held in a language that all participants can understand, so there's room for a policy in that case. But (in the US), you can't usually have a policy on the language of business discussions in general, and almost certainly not for personal discussions.
- pgwhalen 4y ago
  > But (in the US), you can’t usually have a policy on the language of business discussions in general I’m not super informed on the subject, but this runs directly contrary to my understanding. Highly regulated industries require English so regulatory authorities (both in internal and external) can track communication appropriately.
- WirelessGigabit 4y ago
  You're wrong. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/centers-offices/civil-rights-center/internal/policies/english-only-rules#:~:text=EEOC%20Regulation%2029%20C.F.R.,presumed%20to%20violate%20Title%20VII https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/centers-offices/civil-rig.... You cannot prevent 2 people having a personal conversation in a different language from English. But for the purposes of the business, it is fine to require English, otherwise how do you collaborate? Now let's imagine a watercooler chat. 2 colleagues talking in whatever language, and a 3rd one walks up, gets a drink and now is by default excluded. Legally it's all good, but in my opinion, that 3rd person will feel left out.
  - toast0 4y ago
    Your link, which agrees with my understanding says, > Employees' right to speak in languages other than English may only be curtailed in certain narrowly-defined situations. I'm not sure how that makes me wrong when I say that management needs to be careful to follow the law?

toast0 4y ago

> Speaking as a former manager, it is your manager's responsibility to enforce English only. English only rules may violate (US) Federal Equal Opportunity Employment Law, so management needs to be careful to form a policy within the law and apply it within the law. Obviously, business discussions need to be held in a language that all participants can understand, so there's room for a policy in that case. But (in the US), you can't usually have a policy on the language of business discussions in general, and almost certainly not for personal discussions.

pgwhalen 4y ago
> But (in the US), you can’t usually have a policy on the language of business discussions in general I’m not super informed on the subject, but this runs directly contrary to my understanding. Highly regulated industries require English so regulatory authorities (both in internal and external) can track communication appropriately.
WirelessGigabit 4y ago
You're wrong. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/centers-offices/civil-rights-center/internal/policies/english-only-rules#:~:text=EEOC%20Regulation%2029%20C.F.R.,presumed%20to%20violate%20Title%20VII https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/centers-offices/civil-rig.... You cannot prevent 2 people having a personal conversation in a different language from English. But for the purposes of the business, it is fine to require English, otherwise how do you collaborate? Now let's imagine a watercooler chat. 2 colleagues talking in whatever language, and a 3rd one walks up, gets a drink and now is by default excluded. Legally it's all good, but in my opinion, that 3rd person will feel left out.
- toast0 4y ago
  Your link, which agrees with my understanding says, > Employees' right to speak in languages other than English may only be curtailed in certain narrowly-defined situations. I'm not sure how that makes me wrong when I say that management needs to be careful to follow the law?