Ruben Navarrette: Hotel workers fired for speaking Spanish in N...

Gee whiz Ruben... we forgot that Mexico really owns the southwest and shall rise again!!
I wonder how such a hit piece would go over in Mexico had the situation been reversed in his beloved country. Judging by Mexico's laws concerning any non citizen i would suspect that the Federalies would be looking for him.

Whitten is an ass. That is allowed in this country.

I traveled for many years to Mexico and everywhere I went the Mexican people spoke English in there own country ! So what does this mean that Mexicans who work here don't speak English in the good old USA, just explain this to me ! This is not a language issue but a race issue and it could of been solved in that right matter back in the 40's even the 60's but our government couldn't see if it slap them in face, its called DENIAL !Have a great day !

A number of companies have "English only" policies for individuals in the workplace for the exact reason cited in numerous news outlets. The idea is designed to avoid friction caused by one individual thinking that another individual is saying something about him or her in a language that he or she does not understand. Petty? Absolutely. Illegal? Nope. The hotel owner is well within his rights as a business owner to set policy for the conduct of employees working for him at the time they are working for him. Considering the fact that his hotel is in Taos, New Mexico, perhaps his "English only" policy was not pruident...but employees have a choice to work or not to work for him. They could have taken the high-ground and worked with the policy until they had a chance to win him over with performance and then making him part of their team...instead, they chose to be openly insubordinate and put him on the defensive. No one is innocent in this matter.

StayAtHomeMom wrote:

I traveled for many years to Mexico and everywhere I went the Mexican people spoke English in there own country ! So what does this mean that Mexicans who work here don't speak English in the good old USA, just explain this to me ! This is not a language issue but a race issue and it could of been solved in that right matter back in the 40's even the 60's but our government couldn't see if it slap them in face, its called DENIAL !Have a great day !

The United States may not have an official language, but EVERYONE should know the language of 'BUSINESS' is English. I don't feel sorrow or pity for people who refuse to assimilate...

LBC Lifer wrote:

The United States may not have an official language, but EVERYONE should know the language of 'BUSINESS' is English. I don't feel sorrow or pity for people who refuse to assimilate...

I worked for the World Health Organization (WHO) at one time - we were on the US Mexico border 99% of our correspondence and meetings were held in Spanish.

So don't pretend you know all the business dealing and which language they are conducted in, I worked for an industrial supply company that netted $5 million a month in sales ALL his dealings were done in Spanish. His company was in the US but he supplied all the large companies in Mexico and other latin american countries with industrial supplies.

Proud Female Veteran wrote:

<quoted text>
I worked for the World Health Organization (WHO) at one time - we were on the US Mexico border 99% of our correspondence and meetings were held in Spanish.
So don't pretend you know all the business dealing and which language they are conducted in, I worked for an industrial supply company that netted $5 million a month in sales ALL his dealings were done in Spanish. His company was in the US but he supplied all the large companies in Mexico and other latin american countries with industrial supplies.

So what? This is the United States, not 'latin america'.
Most of the United States does NOT sit on the boarder and does NOT conduct business in any other language than English. Assimilate or go home...

Find out what hotels he (Whitten)owns or manages and
simply don't spend your money there.
There are clearly other choices.
Especially since he got his act together by "English only" policies will solve all his friggin problems.

If a business is going to hire people as they
are, they were good enough to be hired as they were.

The problem wasn't with the boats.
The problem was the water. Too liquidy. Hmmm?

To take it (their livelyhood) away because they no longer qualify when before they did.....is very, very poor management.

Times are tough all over.

I truely hope the employees who got booted don't abuse their unemployment benefits and get back on their feet again quickly.

His management should have stated English speakers preferred. And hire English speaking workers.
It would have smoothed this problem from ever surfacing from the start as it did.

Rubin is correct. How dare any one expect an Illegal Colonist to speak English.

How dare a business owner attempt to make his business welcoming to his customers.

Rubin always reminds us of our cowardice and our lack of any pretense of standards, values, or respect for others. It's not a "racial" thing...It's a Progressive thing.

LBC Lifer wrote:

<quoted text>
So what? This is the United States, not 'latin america'.
Most of the United States does NOT sit on the boarder and does NOT conduct business in any other language than English. Assimilate or go home...

So what mad because I mad a vlid point. You must be intelligent enought to know that in certain areas and in certain jobs of the US Bilingual (not only English/Spanish) but any bilingual person makes more money than a monolingual person.

Proud Female Veteran wrote:

<quoted text>
So what mad because I mad a vlid point. You must be intelligent enought to know that in certain areas and in certain jobs of the US Bilingual (not only English/Spanish) but any bilingual person makes more money than a monolingual person.

Of course, being bi lingual is a very good advantage. If you are in a situation where Spanish spoken to the guests of a hotel or if a hotel guest is a Spanish speaker it is a good thing.

None of that had anything to do with this situation. You must be opining on something you know nothing about.

LBC Lifer wrote
"So what? This is the United States, not 'latin america'.
Most of the United States does NOT sit on the boarder and does NOT conduct business in any other language than English. Assimilate or go home..."

I'm not sure everyone is talking about the same issue here. Speaking Spanish is not the same as not being able to speak English.

I am hispanic and grew up only speaking English at home. Later in life i learned to speak Spanish fluently. I sometimes carry on a conversation in spanish and english at the same time. I have a boss who constantly is telling me English! English!
its terrible! Its a free country!I pay my taxes! I have a good job. I will speak, in any language i want no matter what. If you dont like it walk away!

Anna wrote:

I am hispanic and grew up only speaking English at home. Later in life i learned to speak Spanish fluently. I sometimes carry on a conversation in spanish and english at the same time. I have a boss who constantly is telling me English! English!
its terrible! Its a free country!I pay my taxes! I have a good job. I will speak, in any language i want no matter what. If you dont like it walk away!

Luckily in today's California no one has any pride, dignity, or gratitude for being American, so you should thrive.

Maybe Mr. Navarette should start his own business and let nitwit journalists criticize him. All a journalist majors in at College is complaining.

Run a business, compete, provide a better product at a better price. Hire people and let them represent your business, your livelihood.

Butt out.

Proud Female Veteran wrote:

<quoted text>
So what mad because I mad a vlid point. You must be intelligent enought to know that in certain areas and in certain jobs of the US Bilingual (not only English/Spanish) but any bilingual person makes more money than a monolingual person.

You did NOT 'mad'(your spelling for make) a 'vlid'(again,your spelling for valid) point. You made MY point. It's beyond pathetic that any job would REQUIRE a worker to speak Spanish and pay them more for it. AGAIN, ASSIMILATE OR GO HOME! We don't want or need you!
Even then, successful, wealthy, educated BUSINESS people do NOT conduct business in any other language than English. But then you seem to be only part literate after reading your posts...figure it out!

Whitten's employees were bi-lingual...they opted to resist his policy in regards to speaking Spanish while engaged in their duties at the hotel. The policy is his preroagative. The decision to violate the policy was that of the employees. As far as advertising for employees who are "English-speaking preferred"...that is all well and good. An employer may specify that candidates must be able to speak English, however...you can't advertise for "applicants who only speak English".

stopTAGGING ourWALLS wrote:

Find out what hotels he (Whitten)owns or manages and
simply don't spend your money there.
There are clearly other choices.
Especially since he got his act together by "English only" policies will solve all his friggin problems.
If a business is going to hire people as they
are, they were good enough to be hired as they were.
The problem wasn't with the boats.
The problem was the water. Too liquidy. Hmmm?
To take it (their livelyhood) away because they no longer qualify when before they did.....is very, very poor management.
Times are tough all over.
I truely hope the employees who got booted don't abuse their unemployment benefits and get back on their feet again quickly.
His management should have stated English speakers preferred. And hire English speaking workers.
It would have smoothed this problem from ever surfacing from the start as it did.

It is a free country...so at work you can do as you please? Go on breaks or to lunch at your own discretion without regard to the needs or desires of those you work for? You choose whether or not you show up and if you do show up, you can pick your time as you please? Come on, Anne? If an employer says that the workforce is not allowed to speak any language other than English at the worksite, professionals respect the policy and carry-on. The employer can require an employee to speak English at work...the employee cannot require that the employer walk-away. If your "boss" is constantly asking that you speak in English and you continue speaking Spanish, it is obvious that you don't respect his or her authority. And apparently, the issue isn't important enough for your "boss" to enforce his or her request in a more formal manner. Quite frankly, the "boss" should never again ask that you speak in English at work unless it is in writing and he or she is willing to follow-thru.

Anna wrote:

I am hispanic and grew up only speaking English at home. Later in life i learned to speak Spanish fluently. I sometimes carry on a conversation in spanish and english at the same time. I have a boss who constantly is telling me English! English!
its terrible! Its a free country!I pay my taxes! I have a good job. I will speak, in any language i want no matter what. If you dont like it walk away!

LBC Lifer wrote
"It's beyond pathetic that any job would REQUIRE a worker to speak Spanish and pay them more for it. AGAIN, ASSIMILATE OR GO HOME! We don't want or need you!"

Language is a SKILL like any other. if an employer does bussiness with people who speak Spanish (or any other language for that matter) it is perfectly legitimate to require a person to be bilingual.
Likewise, it is also legitimate to require English as a skill requirement.

Language used in the workplace should not be considered a cultural or racial issue. It is a skills issue and employees should obey the wishes of their employer.

He owns the business. He relies on us as customers to make money. He wants his employees to speak English only. If we don't like it, we don't have to spend money at his business. If his employees don't like it, they can learn English or find a different job.

He doesn't owe anyone a job. No one in this country is owed a job (I'd love to be a nuclear physicist, but I can't consistently remember the difference between fission and fusion. Yet the logic here suggests that LANL should still hire me). He doesn't owe anyone an explanation. At the same time, we don't owe him anything.

Any other argument denies the liberty upon which this country was founded yet flounders to understand.

It would be sweet, kind, nice and loving if we could all work forever without bosses, markets, customers or demands. However, business isn't about feeling good, it is about making money, and the owner gets to decide how that's done. He may be wrong or right, but let the customers decide, not the government or employees. If he fails, he failed on his dime. If he succeeds, let him succeed on his dime. If he doesn't want his employees to speak Spanish, so be it. I would make the same argument if he denied English, French, Swahili, Aramaic, or gibberish.

This is none of our GD business!!!