I’m applying for a position at a local court. I already have a position in one, but it’s contract work. I’m in the 2nd phase of the application. I have to answer some very simple questions. Being an even simpler person, I need help with one of them.3. Please describe your experience as well as your style and approach when serving multi-ethnic, economically diverse individuals who may have limited English proficiency.
I deal with non-English speaking, multi-ethnic, economically diverse families all the time, but we hire translators. What’s a good way to answer this?
The answer might depend more on what specific tasks you have to do with clients, but I’d probably just describe the way such interactions usually go down:
- use initial communication with them to gauge their level of proficiency
- consider using alternate words/explanations for things which might confuse them e.g. showing them a form that says “primary residence” and writing in next to it “your home” while saying “the place where you live most of the time” could result in an adequate level of communication to get the point across
- if it’s typically always the same language(s) you encounter, consider learning, or at least have written down, terms and phrases that come up often, so that you can substitute in a word in their language “your house”-> “votre maison” (in French).
- provide [language]-English dictionaries at your desk to help each other communicate during business interactions
- consider providing some services in that language - common forms and routine things with parallel non-English instructions even if the forms and service are in English.
- ask for help from coworkers if necessary/appropriate
- resort to translators if necessary.
Stuff like that. I’ll leave it to you to write it out in full sentences.
“I refrain from using idioms, like asking clients if they have enough money ‘to make ends meet’ or when a situation got ‘out of hand’ or telling an angry person to ‘cool off’.”* These phrases can be confusing to those for whom English is not a first language.
*These examples probably are not relevant to your job, but the concept is valid.
Those are good starts. The languages spoken are not ones I have any familiarity with - Amharic, Croatian, Lao, etc. Apparently these will be people walking in off the street, where it’s not possible to schedule an interpreter for ahead of time.