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One America, Many Voices Act

The population of the United States is increasing in its diversity. This fact is reflected in the rich tapestry of languages that many immigrants have brought to their new home in the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, over 19% of our population (55 million people) speaks a language other than English at home, and the native-born population with Limited English Proficiency nearly doubled between 2000 and 2005, increasing at a higher rate than the immigrant population.

 

Many times, persons with Limited English Proficiency encounter difficulties when conducting business in English with the Federal Government, and so it would be beneficial to promote the use of bilingual skills throughout the Federal workforce to serve the public and accomplish the mission of Federal agencies. Unfortunately, there is no standard across federal agencies to compensate workers who make substantial use of their bilingual skills in the workplace, and no incentive for current or potential Federal employees to acquire bilingual skills.

 

To address this problem, I have introduced the One America Many Voices Act.

 

The population of the United States is increasing in its diversity. This fact is reflected in the rich tapestry of languages that many immigrants have brought to their new home in the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, over 19% of our population (55 million people) speaks a language other than English at home, and the native-born population with Limited English Proficiency nearly doubled between 2000 and 2005, increasing at a higher rate than the immigrant population.

 

Many times, persons with Limited English Proficiency encounter difficulties when conducting business in English with the Federal Government, and so it would be beneficial to promote the use of bilingual skills throughout the Federal workforce to serve the public and accomplish the mission of Federal agencies. Unfortunately, there is no standard across federal agencies to compensate workers who make substantial use of their bilingual skills in the workplace, and no incentive for current or potential Federal employees to acquire bilingual skills.

 

To address this problem, I have introduced the One America, Many Voices Act of 2010, which recognizes the importance of bi- and multi-lingual skills, by providing a 5% incentive to the base pay of Federal workers whose position requires the use of bi- or multi-lingual skills but who currently receive the same pay as workers in the same job whose position description does not include a bilingual skill requirement. The bill will help us recruit and retain a skilled Federal workforce while also helping to improve services for persons with Limited English Proficiency who require translation while conducting business with the Federal government.

 



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