English is the official language of California

[mattja]

Originally Posted by remirosie123

So does this mean then that employers who say "must be bi lingual in Spanish" can no longer legally only hire those that speak Spanish and English. My daughter just moved there (husband military) and many jobs there she has been looking for (criminal justice degree) say "must be bi lingual....

What it means, is like the federal government, the State of California has no problem violating its own constitution.

The amendment to the state constitution doesn't outlaw bilingual requirements for jobs, it just says the state must promote English as the primary language of the state. The "promote" part opens this amendment up to interpretation and I imagine it's near impossible to prove in court the state is not following the law.

Someone would need to sue the state and win in court to force them to actually promote English by outlawing bilingual requirements. And the requirements being outlawed would most likely only affect state government jobs and the private sector would still be free to require whatever they want to require.

[mattja]

Originally Posted by Sand&Salt

^^^^^ Same thing happened to us in Corpus Christi, TX where we lived for a year before retirement. We just wanted some "easy" job for our last year and were fully qualified for those positions---EXCEPT---they required bi-lingual. Even for Home Depot, and other low-level jobs.

So, we didn't have any jobs for that last year. And we were qualified.

That's because all those jobs are taken by illegal aliens.

I was in the basement of Sears 20 years ago (the tool section) looking for a screwdriver set and ALL announcements over the PA system were in Spanish. And the Sears is located in a predominantly white area.

And it's true: older immigrants are not going to learn another language, generally. That happens in the next generation. We emigrated without learning a new language though we tried. At 60+, it's just not happening.

I figure if you live in a Spanish-speaking nation, you should at least try to learn Spanish. They certainly will not bend to your wishes.

But the same is not true here. We are expected to bend to their wishes. Many can't be bothered to learn Eglish.

Growing up in SoCal, I did take Spanish in junior high, but apparently, it didn't "stick", lol.

I grew up in SoCal too. I didn't take Spanish because hardly anyone spoke Spanish. Of course, junior high was 50 years ago.

[Kings Gambit]

Originally Posted by mattja

That's because all those jobs are taken by illegal aliens.

Lets try this again. Those jobs were NOT taken by "illegal aliens". During the pre-employment / background investigation process for ALL new hires, employers are required to obtain what is called I-9 info from new hires within the first week of employment. This I-9 info is ether a green card, social security card AND CA issued drivers license, OR a valid passport. If potential new employer is unable to provide this info, OR they provide false/fake info then the EMPLOYER is breaking the law. The EMPLOYER is who you should complain about not the new/potential new hire.

Here is a link to the I-9 info just in case you dont know anything about it and its requirements - https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/fo...able-documents

Again, if you think that jobs are being taken by illegals, then you really should direct your anger/resentment towards the American business owners who skirt employment laws by figuring out illegal ways to hire them.

[M3Guy]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

After WWI & II, hordes immigrated to the US, escaping wartime destruction and destitution, revolutions in Eurasia (Russia,China), and other disruptions. They had no time to sign up for English classes somewhere, even if there were any to be had.

Another example: the genocide in Guatemala in the 1980's. People showed up in border states wearing their traditional handwoven clothing, because that's all they had. After it became safe to do so, many returned home, though Guatemala is always a crap shoot in terms of political stability and violence. (Thank the School of The Americas for that, which still exists in altered (disguised) form.) When the army shows up in your village and requires everyone to line up in the village square to face the firing squad, you don't run to an English language school (which subsistence farmers couldn't afford anyway). You run for the border, if you can.

Gawd, people!

All of your examples are over 30 years old.

[M3Guy]

Originally Posted by Kings Gambit

OMG!!!! People, lets please get something straight - NO ONE IS LOSING OUT ON JOBS BECAUSE THEY DONT SPEAK SPANISH (or any other non English language)!! Its a qualification for the job per the job description created by the company (usually by HR and approved by corporate LEGAL). Its a posted requirement for the job!!! Its like if a company posts for a "Staff Accountant" position, the job description will say "..must have general ledger experience", this means an AP/AR accountant or Payroll Accountant with 20 years of experience are not qualified because they have never touched a GL in their life.

Dont apply to any job if after reading the job description you understand that you do not have the skills the hiring company is seeking. You didnt "lose out" on that job, you just didnt have the qualifications they are seeking for the role.

When I was fresh out of HS, I was literally turned down from a landscaping company because I was not fluent in Spanish. True story.

[mattja]

Originally Posted by Kings Gambit

Lets try this again. Those jobs were NOT taken by "illegal aliens". During the pre-employment / background investigation process for ALL new hires, employers are required to obtain what is called I-9 info from new hires within the first week of employment. This I-9 info is ether a green card, social security card AND CA issued drivers license, OR a valid passport. If potential new employer is unable to provide this info, OR they provide false/fake info then the EMPLOYER is breaking the law. The EMPLOYER is who you should complain about not the new/potential new hire.

Illegal aliens routinely provide falsified IDs under someone else's social security number. *If* the employer checks it, it comes up legit. This is common knowledge and has been the norm for decades.

Here is a link to the I-9 info just in case you dont know anything about it and its requirements - https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/fo...able-documents

I know about the I9. I've filled out several in my career. They are routinely falsified. See thread below.

https://www.city-data.com/forum/ille...away-fake.html

Again, if you think that jobs are being taken by illegals, then you really should direct your anger/resentment towards the American business owners who skirt employment laws by figuring out illegal ways to hire them.

The jobs are taken by illegal aliens and I do believe employers that knowingly hire them should do jail time.

[TMSRetired]

And the irony is that schools in other countries teach their students English because English is the lingua franca.

Business is global and you can't have people working for you that cannot speak English.

But in America....no need to learn English.
And that will only serve to keep these immigrants at poverty levels.

[ChrisC]

Originally Posted by Kings Gambit

Actually, CA DMV only offers it in 32 different languages, not 73....

Oh... only 32!!! Well, in that case, it makes it okay to waste taxpayer dollars. Sure glad it's 32 and not 73.

And in similar news, California State corrects accusation that it flushed taxpayer money down 73 toilets, stating that it flushed the money down only 32 toilets.

[bus man]

Originally Posted by ChrisC

Oh... only 32!!! Well, in that case, it makes it okay to waste taxpayer dollars. Sure glad it's 32 and not 73.

And in similar news, California State corrects accusation that it flushed taxpayer money down 73 toilets, stating that it flushed the money down only 32 toilets.

A lawsuit was immediately filed, claiming that using 32 toilets was an unnecessary waste of water. California responded that using fewer toilets than that would have resulted in clogged drains, due to the vast amounts of taxpayer dollars that they sought to flush.

[Oldglory]

Originally Posted by mattja

That's because all those jobs are taken by illegal aliens.

I was in the basement of Sears 20 years ago (the tool section) looking for a screwdriver set and ALL announcements over the PA system were in Spanish. And the Sears is located in a predominantly white area.



I figure if you live in a Spanish-speaking nation, you should at least try to learn Spanish. They certainly will not bend to your wishes.

But the same is not true here. We are expected to bend to their wishes. Many can't be bothered to learn Eglish.



I grew up in SoCal too. I didn't take Spanish because hardly anyone spoke Spanish. Of course, junior high was 50 years ago.

You're right. The reason for all of these bi-lingual language requirements to gain employment is directly due to the huge number of Spanish speaking illegals in our country and in part because some of them here legally refuse to learn or speak English. It is blatant discrimination against English speaking Americans and English is our national de facto language not Spanish.

More than half of our states have made English their official language but many of them still pander to foreign language groups. If this were to stop then they would be forced to learn and speak English.

My wife and I have had the same experience shopping. Certain stores have their ads over the intercom completely in Spanish, no English at all. WTH? I also grew up in So. Calif. and that was unheard of back then. Anyone who tries to claim that it's because there are more Hispanics here legally or are citizens of our country than decades ago is just lying to themselves because most of them know English. It is directly due to this massive invasion from south of our border and the greedy businesses will pander to them just for a buck! It's unacceptable for them to not at least provide their advertising in English to. What are we, "chopped liver"? Our bucks don't count? Reminds me of our present federal government where it's foreigners first and and Americans last.