How Can Companies Help ESL Employees Improve Their English?

In the Pacific Northwest, you’ll find many people who speak English as a foreign language. Many of them are fluent; some are not. This blog addresses the topic on how can companies help ESL employees improve their English.

Ways to support ESL employees with English improvement

Providing English support is a key solution. The article Tips for HR managers to better support ESL employees goes into depth on this topic.

Provide industry specific ESL training

Many companies just send their employees to an ESL class in a community college. While that would improve their overall English abilities, it would not address the specific industry English. For this reason, it is a good idea to bring in a trainer who can design a program tailored to your companies’ needs for these employees.

Creating an intercultural atmosphere

And language improvement is not the only benefit from this kind of training. If you find a trainer who is familiar with many cultures, she can help your company create an atmosphere that feels comfortable for both international and American employees. That is gold! For any company.

The article also goes into what to look for when you research trainers for this important role. That person can build cultural bridges for you. Being an outsider, she is not involved with the existing dynamics. So she has more freedom to relate with anyone. This freedom translates to an opportunity to create new dynamics, new attitudes in the employees that she interacts with, both ESL and American employees.

You can read the full article here.

If you find this helpful, here is another blog on Tips for managers of multi-cultural team.

And if you work with benefits in HR, the article How to help ESL employees understand company benefits would be of value to you. It includes practical tips to make sure these employees are aware of what the company is offering.

If you are a supervisor or manager involved with performance reviews, the article How to help ESL employees prepare for performance reviews would offer some useful insights.

Estrella Chan coaches immigrants and international professionals in English fluency, interview skills, and public speaking.    To schedule a session with her, please email support@englisharoundtheworld.com

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