Overcoming language barriers with language awareness: which work communities enable thriving also for immigrant background experts?

Guest post by Shadia Rask, Research Manager from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL).

What types of language barriers exist in working life in Finland? What does language awareness mean? Is the responsibility of learning a language on the employee or the work community? How are lost in translation moments and psychological safety related?

These questions have been explored and answered by the Manifold More project.

Manifold More project aims to improve the diversity in working life, and especially the employment and expertise of highly educated women who have moved to Finland. For three years the project has been developing language awareness in the context of an expert organization.

Stumbling over language barriers

The most experienced barrier to employment among the foreign background population in Finland is lacking Finnish or Swedish language skills. According to the FinMonik research nearly half of the foreign background population estimate the lack of language skills as a barrier to employment.

Employers have a high threshold to hire a foreign background expert. According to the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment’s At Home in Finland report, fewer than one in four recruiters are ready to hire someone who does not have fluent Finnish skills. In addition, half of the recruiters from different fields think that in order to be successful at a job, the Finnish language skills should be nearly at the level of a native speaker.

According to the Diversity Barometer 2020 nearly 90% of HR professionals believed that perfect Finnish or Swedish skills are not required if the job does not specifically require it. Often language requirements seem justified, but prejudices and discrimination are often hidden in the background.

Lack of language skills is a vicious barrier to employment. On the one hand, lack of language skills is a barrier to gaining employment, and on the other hand, lack of employment is a barrier to improving language skills. What types of solutions could stop this vicious cycle?

Language awareness as a solution

The purpose of language awareness is to remove barriers to understanding and participation and make it possible to work as an expert even with developing Finnish language skills.

In the Manifold More project, the language-aware working culture is embedded into everyday working habits: meetings are held using a two-language hybrid model. In addition to Finnish, the work community has agreed that one is also allowed to speak in English if their expertise is then best shared. 

In addition, in stakeholder meetings, everyone is briefed about the language-aware practices. Thus, the responsibility for language-aware working practices is not solely the responsibility of one employee.

The critical assessment of Finnish language skills has also been one of the project’s solutions to improve diversity in recruitment. The project hired two project researchers through their diversity promoting recruitment experiment.

One language-aware and creative practical solution has been that Manifold More project’s report on sexual and gender minorities in the foreign-origin population was first written in English and then translated into Finnish.

The work community must enable language learning

”It is often thought that if someone has been here for years and has not learned the language, it is their failure. We must start asking how have we helped, left them without any help, or even acted as a barrier in their language development. This is a joint effort.”

This is what language catalyst Irina Pravet said in the Helsingin Sanomat interview on 20.10.2020. Pravet also facilitated Manifold More project’s language awareness development process.

The development process crystallized the idea that a language-aware workplace supports the language learning of an immigrant background employee. This is similar to human resource development by offering staff training in communication and project development.

The employees of the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) can nowadays take Finnish language courses during their working hours and at the expense of the employer.

Preparing and engaging the work community in language awareness is an important part of language-aware practices. It is essential to realize that the efforts in time provide added value to expertise when a more representative pool of experts participates in the designing and decision-making.

Mishaps and moments lost in translation

The daily life of a language-aware work community also involves moments lost in translation. These are accidental mishaps and misunderstandings. Language-related situations may cause amusement but also shame.

Without a language-aware and supportive work community, the expert who has moved to the country may be left alone with feelings of shame and inferiority caused by language mishaps. For example, if one accidentally says that they will “eat” the project manager today when they are actually “meeting” them.

Likewise, Finnish-speaking colleagues may be confused about the hybrid model and may feel ashamed if they think they lack English skills.

In the Manifold More project, language awareness has meant that everyone can use one of the two common languages – Finnish or English – with which they feel most competent to share their expertise. It is also important to provide space and permission to ask questions when one is unsure or does not understand.

Manifold More project will publish comic strips about language-aware practices in working life.

Everyone can thrive in a psychologically safe work community  

The work community must be psychologically safe so that one feels comfortable using developing language skills.

Psychological safety means the shared experience that one can be themself and take risks in the work community. In a psychologically safe space, one can ask questions without the fear of rejection or punishment from others.

Everyone benefits from an equal and non-discriminatory work community. Everyone wants to feel valued and a part of the community. Diversity is also a success factor for an organisation: it increases innovation, the ability to reach new customer groups, and economic profitability.

The mere existence of diversity does not automatically yield success. It requires good leadership, psychological safety, and inclusive practices – such as language awareness.

Shadia Rask is a Research Manager at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. She leads the Manifold More project that aims to promote diversity in working life and advance the career paths of highly educated women with immigrant backgrounds.

More information about the European Social Fund (ESF) funded Manifold More project from here. The project is led by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) and partnered with the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (FIOH).