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learn a few languages, it just makes you smarter. i could care less what language people who work in retail speak. in fact, i am impressed when someone can utter a word in another language other than english.
btw, any store in europe you go in can converse in a few languages, and they're not upset if you, the english speaking american go and ask for something in english. why are you offended when that happens here? in fact, this just makes you sound ignorant.
Location: Concrete jungle where dreams are made of.
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When you shop in a spanish area, expect them to speak spanish to you. My husband's father goes to this spanish grocery store in a primarily spanish neighborhood to get this kind of sausage you can't get anywhere else. They speak spanish to him, it's no big deal. It's the area the store's in.
To the OP, if it bothered you so very much, maybe you could of asked them to please speak in english if it made you uncomfortable. You could also go to the manager and tell him/her that the cashiers were being rude by excluding the customer during a transaction.
Having said this, I disagree that if someone is not talking to you, you should be offended if they are talking another language. Nobody is forced to talk in english among their own friends. And to the person who said they would take a cab to the airport, well then goodbye, au revoir, sayonara, hasta la vista, adios, don't let the door hit you where the lord split you (or on the as*) ,arrivedece, adeus, and have a good day!
I am a cashier. I speak incredibly limited Spanish, and therefore prefer not to use it unless I have to. However, I live and work in an area with a proportionally significant Spanish-speaking population, and am aware that certain regular customers who come to the store do not speak any English beyond "Hello" and "
Thank you". As such, I greet said customers in Spanish (I can make very limited small talk).
What makes ME uncomfortable is when I'm trying to tell someone who speaks NO English something important so they can finish their transaction, I know for a FACT their kid or the person behind them in line is fluently bilingual, and instead of helping, they stand there with a blank look on their face while the situation between the non-bilingual customer and myself becomes increasingly awkward.
To be fair, though, if I got into a conversation with someone in Spanish, and someone next to me did not speak it, I might be considerate enough to tell them what I was talking about so they could be included in the discussion. Otherwise it does kind of have the same effect as two people standing next to you looking at a piece of paper and laughing, but not showing it to you. It can be uncomfortable.
When I was visiting Vegas I felt a bit uncomfortable that all the staff at one store were speaking in Spanish - I got the impression that they were talking about the customers.
They could all speak english too - as we had asked them some questions, so I felt uncomfortable when they were pointedly talking in another language that I couldn't understand.
Aside from thatI don't mind if people speak in their own language - but it shouldn't be used as a secret code to gossip in front of people or to leave people out of conversations.
Because that's not nice.
I WISH AMERICANS WOULD NOT BE SO SENSITIVE. NINETY-NINE PERCENT OF FOREIGNERS SPEAK IN THEIR OWN LANGUAGE, BECAUSE THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH IT. IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH WITH SPEAKING ABOUT OTHERS, IS SIMPLY A COMFORT ZONE.
What I hate is when the cashier at the checkstand I'm in line at, and the two cashiers on either side of me, and all the customers being waited on are ALL speaking spanish. I feel like I'm in the twilight zone and wonder, "What the hell happened to my country?"
Stop shopping at Food For Less and go to Von's. Problem solved.
The language of the United States is English, you are required to read & understand it to get US Citizenship. So those that are not speaking it are probably illegal immigrants, and don't belong here! If you are legally here and are working a job that requires communication between customers, have respect and talk the language of the country your in, its rude to speak a different language around customers if your an employee!
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