Great job prospect until I see Bilingual a MUST!! (owner, employers, accountants)

[supernerdgirl]

Originally Posted by hnsq

Like it or not, society is global any more. I used to work with someone from Slovakia and she was fluent in five languages. This is the norm in every modern society except America.

My company is just getting into the Chinese market, and I really wish I knew the language. While other people have the chance to travel and see the world, I have no chance to jump on these trips out there to help out. I agree that people should know English to live in America, but us Americans should know more than just English simply to keep up.

If i had the time and energy, I would love to be able to speak 5 languages. Especially around here, I'd love to know Spanish and Polish (I do know SOME Spanish, but Polish is COMPLETELY foreign to me).

I don't understand why Americans think it's so strange or "wrong" somehow to know more than English.

[glxyman21]

Many jobs are tapping into foreign markets, which require someone to work in the business language, usually English, and a foreign language. People who do not capitalise on their language skills for work would be ignorant not to. It can land them a job paying good money while also progressing their language skills further, that is a win win situation. If you live in Europe, knowing multiple languages is a must, and many learn English if they want to work in a business environment. Apply to a job in Italy, France or Germany and they normally require a good knowledge of English. I grew up in the states and know three languages: Italian, French and English. I have a Friend in Switzerland who knows 5 and is learning a 6th.

[jenn02674]

It is not wrong for companies to want someone that speaks other languages. There is a market out there and it would be stupid of businesses not to tap into it. It isn't a matter of someone not learning the local language (most people do it is just older 1st generationers have a much more difficult time) it is a matter of being more comfortable doing business in your native language. If I was in a country that spoke another language, I would want to do my banking business in english or purchase a home or car in english no matter how fluent I was in other languages.

Even if we someone made it a requirement that you had to learn english to live in this country, there would still be a huge market for biligual employees particularly in the retail and service sector. It is a global economy. It is not like every single job out there requires you to know another language, it is just that there are 50 other people competing for the job that doesn't require that second language vs. perhaps one or two (in the US) that does.

[gardener34]

It depends on the neighborhood where the business is. In our area I see many job openings where they want bilingual, and not necessarily spanish... I see Korean, Polish, Mandarin ... esp. among banks, and auto dealers and mortgage brokers, and real estate businesses, it all depends on the neighborhood.

And I think all students should take some other language. Me, I only know spanish but cannot converse in it because the native speakers here talk too fast. I wish I knew more languages.

Yes, it is aggravating to see that as a job requirement but the businesses are only catering to their customers. It is totally aggravating when the govt. does it though.

[Dd714]

Originally Posted by hnsq

Like it or not, society is global any more. I used to work with someone from Slovakia and she was fluent in five languages. This is the norm in every modern society except America.

My company is just getting into the Chinese market, and I really wish I knew the language. While other people have the chance to travel and see the world, I have no chance to jump on these trips out there to help out. I agree that people should know English to live in America, but us Americans should know more than just English simply to keep up.

English is the language of business. It's nice, but absolutely not required to know a certain language in the U.S to "keep up" unless you work in the service industry in an ethnic area of this country where the customers only know one language (i.e. - California for obvious reasons). If I were a European, or Ethiopean, or Chinese, I would strive to know English. English is THEE one language you need to know. That way a businessman from the U.S., The Netherlands, Kuwait, and from China can all converse together.

By the way I was in Europe twice last month - once on business and once on vacation. Knowing another language would be only a small (very very small) benifit to my business dealings.

[Alanboy395]

Originally Posted by supernerdgirl

If i had the time and energy, I would love to be able to speak 5 languages. Especially around here, I'd love to know Spanish and Polish (I do know SOME Spanish, but Polish is COMPLETELY foreign to me).

I don't understand why Americans think it's so strange or "wrong" somehow to know more than English.

A second language should be learned for a personal hobby or furthering educational goals, NOT for getting a basic job and NOT out of need. Why does it have to be spanish that is our second language?

The language that you should learn if you want to make some real $$$$ is Arabic. The CIA is always looking for Arabic-speaking folks and you get a stable govt job.

[supernerdgirl]

Originally Posted by Alanboy395

Why does it have to be spanish that is our second language?

If you go to a LOT of places in Chicago, you will find people looking for bilingual in POLISH and English. Some places, God forbid, want you know at least a smattering of Polish and Spanish.

Look, I work with the public on the weekends, and we have people from all over the world come into our store. I would LOVE to be able to actually communicate with some of them, rather than spend 5 minutes to try to figure out what the hell we're trying to say to each other.

[jimmyrocks]

There's a lot more to multilingualism than just knowing a language. It's about learning and understanding the culture where the language is spoken. Growing up in America, your only exposure to this would be through French Canada and Mexico, this is unlike Europe, where you have tons of countries and cultures right next to each other. Most Americans get their introduction to other cultures / languages through school or their friends / families, and most families almost completely assimilate by the 2nd or 3rd generation. It is very hard to be introduced to different cultures in America, relative to Europe.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this, so here's an anecdotal story:

I worked with a salesman a while ago who couldn't make sales at all in America. But he was Puerto Rican, and spoke fluent Puerto Rican spanish, and he'd always get a ton of deals down there. But when it comes to sales it's all about culture, and language / accent is a very large part in that.

This is the same way there are prejudices in America against people with different dialects and accents. I know I am always more comfortable with people who not only speak American English, but have similar pronouciation and mannerisms as I do. It's easier to read people.

[Houston3]

Originally Posted by supernerdgirl

If i had the time and energy, I would love to be able to speak 5 languages. Especially around here, I'd love to know Spanish and Polish (I do know SOME Spanish, but Polish is COMPLETELY foreign to me).

I don't understand why Americans think it's so strange or "wrong" somehow to know more than English.

Where did anyone here say it was strange or wrong to know more than English?

[What!]

Yeah, I agree with the O.P. because some of these jobs don't even require you to speak with people who speak a language other than English. I wish I could find the craigslist ad for a dishwasher and one of the requirements was being bilingual. WTF?? Why do you need to be bilingual to wsh dishes?