A University Senate proposal aimed to help the university’s non-native-English-speaking workers has proven difficult to fund and implement.
“Questions remain as to who will pay for translating which set of documents and into what language,” said Robert Waters, associate vice president for academic affairs, whose office is starting a program that will discuss language issues.
Although departments such as Facilities Management have translated some documents, there has not been a cohesive effort by every department in the university, according to university equity officer Gloria Aparicio.
Although most of the translation would accommodate Spanish speakers, other languages including Vietnamese and French would also be considered because of the large number of workers from countries who speak these languages, Waters said.
According to Christine Clark, the most frequent requests for translations come from non-exempt employees, such as housekeepers. Clark said the sheer number of policies that need translation as well as the number of languages are obstacles in implementing the program.
Clark said another problem slowing the implementation of this policy is that translators must be fluent in not only a language, but also in its culture.
“You can’t simply translate from one language to another, because some concepts in English do not translate to other languages,” Clark said. “American concepts like sexual harassment [do] not mean a lot in Spanish; it’s a very complex process.”
Contact reporter Arelis Hernandez at hernandezdbk@gmail.com.
