Article: A grasp of English is more than a job skill

Seattle Post-Intellegencer Reporter, August 4, 2003, by John Iwasaki

Above the hum of the fabrication floor, in the back of the company lunchroom, 13 sheet-metal workers crowded around tables and talked about their weekend plans, their favorite television shows and their families.

Amid good-natured teasing, they also discussed how to ask someone a personal question and reviewed their employee handbook.

It wasn't a leisurely lunch break. They were on the clock for part of the hour, getting paid to attend an on-site class and gain what none possessed: a strong grasp of the English language.

"This gives us more confidence to have communication with our co-workers," said Mexican émigré Manuel Delgado, a machine operator at National Industrial Concepts, a precision sheet metal fabrication business in Woodinville.

With the population of non-native English speakers more than doubling during the 1990s in Washington, instruction in English as a second language is in high demand. More than 260,000 state residents have at least some difficulty speaking English, according to the 2000 Census.

Certain businesses such as hotels, nursing homes and manufacturers depend heavily on an entry-level immigrant work force. Those workers often juggle two jobs and don't have time to take ESL classes at community or technical colleges, which served nearly 11,000 ESL students in the past school year and often have waiting lists anyway.

For companies like National Industrial Concepts, where 40 percent of the workers do not speak English well, bringing an ESL teacher to the job site makes business sense.

"We do it for two reasons. One is a concern for our employees; the other is a concern for our business," company President Scott Smith said. "It's not completely out of the goodness of our heart, but it's part of it.

"If you don't speak good English, it takes more time and energy to start up new projects, to teach people, to monthly update people. We also know it's a huge benefit to our employees, who are speaking (their native) language at home and have nobody to teach them the basics of English."

National Industrial Concepts held a graduation party last week for the 22 students in two classes who completed an eight-week course taught by Asian Counseling and Referral Service of Seattle.

The agency is one of several offering worksite ESL instruction in King County, along with some two-year colleges.

Classes are financed through public and private grants, along with employer contributions.

The classes usually run three hours a week -- at least half on company time -- and cover workplace basics, such as communicating with supervisors, following directions and understanding safety policies.

They also are tailored for particular businesses, using a company's terminology and work documents.

At National Industrial Concepts, managers especially wanted workers to have more confidence to go to their supervisors with questions, rather than asking co-workers.

The company also wanted workers to use appropriate language.

Before, when Delgado accidentally destroyed a part and his supervisor would ask him what happened, "I'd say, 'I (expletive) up this part,' " he said, repeating the profane slang he heard elsewhere. "Now I say, 'I messed up.' "

At the Sorrento Hotel in downtown Seattle, an immigrant housekeeper knew only three English words -- yes, no, OK -- and fled when approached by a guest, said Sumonnat Puttavon, associate director of the Refugee Resettlement Office of Episcopal Migration Ministries in Seattle.

After the agency taught an ESL class at the hotel, the employee learned how to summon help for guests and no longer fears looking people in the eyes.

Operations became smoother at Tim's Cascade Style Potato Chips in Algona, which held its first on-site ESL class last year and plans to do another this fall.

Chief Executive Officer Tim Kennedy had wanted to improve the language ability of his immigrant employees, most of whom do everything from peeling potatoes to packing bags in boxes.

"The only availability (for ESL classes) was off site. It was crazy," Kennedy said. "I said, 'Wouldn't it be great if somebody could come to the business?' "

That happened through the class, which was coordinated by the Refugee Resettlement Office.

Thirteen employees with seven different native languages -- including Italian, Korean and Spanish -- participated, as did a supervisor.

The class helped shore up safety concerns, developed camaraderie and brought about an "attitudinal change" in the company, Kennedy said. "Maybe there were some stereotypes that supervisors had, where they thought the (non-native English speaker) was just being obstinate."

The Refugee Resettlement Office also coordinated several courses at the Caroline Kline Galland Home, a nursing facility in Seattle's Seward Park neighborhood.

The home's elderly residents have "difficulty seeing, hearing and understanding," Chief Executive Officer Joshua Gortler said, making it imperative for employees to be able to communicate clearly.

Since many of his workers from Asia and Ethiopia have second jobs, he needed an incentive for them to stay after their shift to take an on-site ESL course.

Gortler pays employees timeand a half to participate. He sweetened the deal by offering a $50 bonus, underwritten by a donor, to those who complete the class.

"It's just $50, but for a $10-per-hour employee, $50 means a lot, in addition to gaining the knowledge," Gortler said.

Increasing their language skills makes employees much more likely to be able to advance in their company. They also are in a greater position to nab a better job elsewhere, though companies believe that helping their employees produces loyalty.

"They are the best workers, they make the best product, they come on time and do the job, as opposed to a lot of native (English) speakers," said Maureen Kill, who coordinates the workplace skills program at Lake Washington Technical College in Kirkland.

The college is a leading provider of workplace ESL instruction in the region.

But workplace productivity isn't the only reward. Kill recalled a worker from Southeast Asia whose husband was dying. Her ESL class incorporated medical terminology.

At the class graduation, Kill said, "The woman said, 'This is particularly important to me, because my husband was in the hospital with cancer.... I could not have done it without this.' "