Is it right that a business cell phone store requires that I speak English and Spanish ?

Anonymous

They probably wouldn't hire you anyway, not necessarily for your lack of [or unwillingness to use] needed bilingual skills, but for your churlish attitude, which could negatively affect both customers and the bilingual staff. Keep trying, though; disability is a hiring plus if you could just work on improving your perspective. And getting paid for doing something is vastly superior to getting paid for doing nothing and sulking at home.

capitalgentleman

Sure. They have a business case for bilingual staff, and if you aren't, you cannot work there. This happens all the time in Canada, where many are required to be English-Fench bilingual, especially for Government jobs. Where I live now, having German makes you very desirable for the tourist related jobs, as we get large numbers of German tourists. It doesn't matter what people SHOULD speak. In business, it matters what they DO speak.

Metal

Sure it is "right" if that is part of the customer base. They need employees that can service their customer base. You need to stop belly aching and get a job somewhere else that you are more suited for. It is true that those that come to this country need to learn english and assimilate, otherwise this country will fail.

tentofield

If you are in an English/Spanish speaking country like the USA, it is reasonable to expect that people whose first language is English or Spanish have a working knowledge of the other language. If a particular business has dealings with both English and Spanish speakers the staff should be able to speak both languages. When the USA took over a large part of Mexico after the Mexican-American war in 1848, the territory came with a large number of Spanish speakers so some States in the southwest of the USA are completely bilingual.

TexHabs

Yes especially if they're in a part of the U.S. with a strong Spanish-speaking clientele.

Pearl L

they nnight need to do that cause sonnetinnes people only talk spanish so they need sonneone that talks spanish when they get those calls

John P

The sort of employee a business is looking for depends on where that business is, and on the sort of clientele which it expects to have walking through the door. In some parts of the USA there are many speakers of Spanish around and naturally the business does not want to ignore their potential custom by having no Spanish speakers. If you do not like being where you are in the USA, move to a part where there are no Spanish speakers. And remember that no European languages were spoken anywhere in the Americas 520 years ago. The Spanish and Portuguese became the European languages much spoken - English and other European languages came along almost a century later. Just think of all those Spanish words used everyday in American English, such as sierra; lariat; mesa; and all those Spanish place names such as Las Vegas and Los Angeles. They did not exist in normal British English, and still do not. They went into American English because the fledgling USA took over many areas previously under Spanish rule.