Language Diversity in the Workplace

Abstract

In March of 2005, the manager of a Dunkin' Donuts in Yonkers, New York, stirred some local controversy when he posted a sign inviting customers to complain if they heard employees behind the counter speaking a language other than English. A day later, the manager removed the sign, responding to vociferous complaints that it amounted to discrimination. While the mini-drama was not itself an unusual event-English-only rules have become increasingly common in the American workplace-the episode did not follow the predictable script. The manager, who acted on his own, was himself a native Spanish speaker-an immigrant from Ecuador. He claimed he had posted the sign in response to customer complaints about employees behind the counter acting disrespectfully by speaking Spanish in the presence of customers. But the outcry that prompted the manager to remove the sign came not from the employees whose speech had been curtailed, nor from groups representing their interests, but from the very clientele the manager thought he had been serving. The people of the neighborhood immediately denounced the policy as discriminatory, coming to the defense of the Latino, Egyptian, and Filipino employees. And while Dunkin' Brands, Inc. requires employees who interact with the public to be fluent in English, the company immediately issued a statement distancing itself from the manager's action, emphasizing that "having employees that speak the languages of the local neighborhood ... can be a key element in creating a hospitable environment." The company took no disciplinary action against the manager, and the episode ended looking like nothing more than a big misunderstanding.