English Language Ability Can be Valid Job Qualification

Issue: A car rental company employs hundreds of workers, and a number of these employees speak Spanish as a primary language. One employee’s understanding and use of English was very limited. The company refused to promote this employee by denying his job bid for the position of “Courtesy Bus Driver,” admittedly due to the employee’s inability to understand and communicate in English. The employee filed a grievance against the company, claiming that he was discriminated against because he was not proficient in English, and the matter was eventually submitted to arbitration. Was the employee entitled to the requested promotion?

Answer: No. The employee, a full-time service agent, was properly denied his job bid because his inability to understand English greatly diminished his capacity to competently perform the essential tasks required of a Courtesy Bus Driver.

Management has the right to assess qualifications.
The parties’ collective bargaining agreement reserved to management the right to determine whether an applicant possessed the “ability” to qualify for consideration as a bus driver, and the evidence clearly established that drivers “must have the ability to speak and understand English.”

English language ability was an essential qualification.
Although the job bid itself contained no qualifications and there was no written job description or written “English-only” requirement, English was used almost exclusively by drivers, managers, and in all written documentation affecting the bus driver position. This documentation included “all recorded announcements to customers, printed location directions, signs, rental agreements, memos from management, and the training manual.” Finally, all oral communication between bus drivers, base-dispatch, and supervisors was conducted in English. Therefore, the employer established that the understanding and usage of English was “an essential qualification vital to the efficient operation of the bus.”

Employer’s obligations:
Nonetheless, the employer potentially could have prevented the grievance had it clearly defined the job qualifications in writing. Moreover, the arbitrator noted that the employee was to be allowed the opportunity to re-bid under certain conditions:

1. The employee must first complete English language lessons and/or otherwise “demonstrate” that he has improved his English language ability.
2. The employee may request such a demonstration at any time within six months from the date of the decision.
3. The demonstration must consist of driver job-related English materials and questions, and may involve actual interaction on a bus.

Cite: Avis Rent A Car System, Inc and Freight Drivers, Warehouseman and Helpers, Local Union No 390. 99-1 ARB P5502. Robert B. Hoffman.

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