A reversal on the complaints we usually get for language barriers

[nuthing12]

Usually we get complaints from customers complaining that their server could only speak in broken English, which is understandable when you're talking about living in the United States and your main client base doesn't speak a second language. Well this person decided to turn the tables on the whole concept and wrote to us this:

I wanted to order in Spanish and the customer respresentative wasn't bilingual, in the Spanish Language. I asked for a taco in Spanish, that's all. Overall, the food was delicious. Just upset that the person on the register was not Spanish speaking.

Thoughts from the group? Sucky Customer or just a dig at American Society always complaining about the real southerners in our midst?

PS. The restaurant he visited was in California

[Seshat]

Were you in a country where the dominant language is Spanish? If not, then you can't expect a server to speak Spanish.

If I were in Quebec, and not French/English bilingual, I would expect to have problems getting customer-facing work. Anywhere else in Canada, I would expect to need to speak English, but not necessarily French.

Does that help?

[thehuckster]

A customer complains in English that he/she could not order a "taco" in Spanish. The Spanish word for taco, by the way is, guess what? TACO!

This is either a prank letter or it's one of those idiots who thinks an ethnic restaurant is not authentic unless it's staffed by people of that nationality.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Thoughts from the group? Sucky Customer or just a dig at American Society always complaining about the real southerners in our midst?

Sucky Customer. Period.

Even if it's a dig at American Society, the fact that they bothered to submit a complaint to be ironic makes them sucky in my view.

[Marszenka]

I'm not necessarily sure this is a prank. I've spent the past few summers working in Tucson, and there have been more than a few (Mexicans? Mexican Americans? Hard to know for sure, but the city does get a lot of revenue from Mexico) who were upset when people don't speak Spanish. My manager was born in Mexico, so she's fluent, and coworker V knows a little, but T and I know none at all. I took it upon myself to make a sheet of paper with English/Spanish translations of words that fit our store (jewelry, turquoise, silver, large, small, earrings, necklace, how much is it, Sorry, I don't speak Spanish, etc etc etc), but some people get mad anyway. I have no sympathy.

If I'd lived in Tucson all my life I probably would have chosen to learn Spanish. But Dad is Air Force, my family has only been there three years and I'm never home except for summer and winter breaks (yay college!)...oh, and we spent five years in Germany.

Guess which foreign language I know?

[Raveni]

Guess which foreign language I know?

French?


When I was with Gamestore, I opened a store along the Texas-Mexico border. Customers would literally hang up on you if you answered in English, but they were never otherwise sucky about it. Most, in fact, knew enough English to ask to speak in Spanish, and all of them knew enough to complete cash transactions.

If this place was on the border, or in an area where all the residents spoke Spanish, then maybe they should hire bilingual staff. Otherwise, its a sucky customer.

[barainga]

While the US has no official language, we are primarily an english speaking country. Therefore no one should complain if somone isnt bilingual. I wouldnt expect to visit France or Japan and then complain when a server didnt speak english. To be honest the US has enough of a world image issue already because well frankly.. we probably deserve it.

On the other hand, most other countries ( at least that ive been to) tend to speak english in addition to thier standard language so its probably never going to be an issue. Or at least enough so that communication is possible, although Ive played a few fun games of charade, but it works more often than not.

[protege]

On the other hand, most other countries ( at least that ive been to) tend to speak english in addition to thier standard language so its probably never going to be an issue.

China is one of those countries. My dad's been there twice in recent years. He was over there...teaching English. He said that many people *want* to learn English, and are very enthusiastic about it. However, there are very few people that they can try out their skills with. Since the US is their largest trading partner, many see it as a benefit. Especially so, when you consider that their economy is moving away from communism, and is becoming more 'capitalist.'

[houdini]

China is one of those countries. My dad's been there twice in recent years. He was over there...teaching English. He said that many people *want* to learn English, and are very enthusiastic about it. However, there are very few people that they can try out their skills with. Since the US is their largest trading partner, many see it as a benefit. Especially so, when you consider that their economy is moving away from communism, and is becoming more 'capitalist.'

We visited China a few years ago, and ended up giving an impromput English lesson. Unfortunately, their classes included Shakespear, and led to us trying to explain why you shouldn't call someone a "blaggard", and also the difference between "taking a piss" and "taking the piss", and why they are most definately not the same thing...English is a pretty weird language!

And back to the point: I agree that he was a sucky customer - if you are not in a country that speaks that language, you should not expect to be served in that language. If you are, it's a bonus.

[Andara Bledin]

I'm in the Los Angeles area, and I've seen some of these assholes.

Hell, we had a customer call in, from South America, so I can't blame him for not knowing English, but he got all pissy with us because we only had one Spanish speaker in the office at the time (he called very late, which is odd, since he was a couple/few time zones ahead of us). And then he called back the next day and bitched to our Spanish-speaking salesperson (a different woman) about how the first one spoke "Mexican Spanish" and went on some racist tirade about it. Nevermind the fact that the woman in question grew up in El Salvador and the woman he was bitching to actually came from Mexico.

Anyone who bitches about someone not speaking anything besides the dominant or legally mandated language(s) of the region is an SC. The only exception is for companies that specifically offer service in a different language.

^-.-^

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

We wouldn't think too highly of an American who tries to order food in a foreign country and demands the counter person speak English even if they only know their own native language, right?

What's good for the goose is good for the gander. Sucky customer is sucky.

[Stryker One]

If I'd lived in Tucson all my life I probably would have chosen to learn Spanish. But Dad is Air Force, my family has only been there three years and I'm never home except for summer and winter breaks (yay college!)...oh, and we spent five years in Germany.

Guess which foreign language I know?

Farsi?


Damn 10 character requirement.

[ArcticChicken]

He said that many people *want* to learn English, and are very enthusiastic about it.

I heard a statistic somewhere that there are more English speakers in China than there are in England.

[dalesys]

I heard a statistic somewhere that there are more English speakers in China than there are in England.

And they speak better English?

(Sez duhr Merkun)

[ozcatbug]

I specifically chose my high school based on the fact that it was the only school in the area that didn't have compulsory French. At the end of my first year we were informed that the school would be introducing a foreign language, and we were given a choice of Japanese or French. 100% of the response was Japanese. I ended up studying it right through to year 12. Have to say knowing Japanese is a hell of a lot more useful in Australia than knowing French.

However, there was the time when I was working at the theme park. At a certain time every year we would have an influx of French Polynesians, who refused to speak English even though they were typically fluent. By this stage I had forgotten a lot of my Japanese. Though I could understand it if someone was speaking it, I had trouble initiating it. These French Polynesians would upset most of the staff as they would get angry at us if we couldn't understand them when they insisted on speaking French. There was only one guy in our department that was fluent in French, and he only worked weekends. So I turned it around on them one day. They started speaking French and I started speaking Japanese. The confused look on their face was priceless, but they then started speaking English. What was better was when the next couple in line asked why I had been telling the previous couple the words to a children's song? Truthfully, it was the only thing I could think of at the time, but the Japanese tourists had a good laugh after I explained, despite them having limited English skills. At least they tried.