Making meaning of multilingualism at work: from competence to conviviality

The present study contributes to recent renewed interest in the social construction of folk linguistic knowledge and directs its focus to a multilingual workplace. The article reports on an in-depth sociolinguistic investigation in a European institution in Luxembourg. Data were collected in 2020-2021 with trainees and permanent staff in a terminology and communication unit. The data collection triangulated qualitative techniques of longitudinal interviewing, reflective drawing, writing reflection, and observation. Analysis of participants’ stances uncovered a varying understanding of what multilingualism means in the workplace, how it changes and to what effect. During reflective participation, the trainees heightened their socio-pragmatic awareness of diversity in the meaning-making process. Moreover, they ceased to construct their personal multilingualism as proof of professional competence and started to see it as the basis of their own well-being, personal self-realisation and growth. As such, they re-coupled the social and linguistic aspect of their language use and aligned their stances with the permanent staff. This study aims to inspire more innovative approaches with a potential direct effect in multilingual workplaces, especially in those welcoming workers from monolingual or otherwise homogenous social environments

Adverse ‘native speaker’ effects on Anglophones in the multilingual workplace

Exploring social effects of differentiation between “native and non-native” varieties of English, the presented study followed six Anglophone trainees in a transnational unit of an EU institution situated in Luxembourg. Data were gathered qualitatively in 2018-19, combining on-site observations, longitudinal-, and one-off interviews. The interviewing incited participants’ reflections on language practices and mapped their discursive positioning of the “native English speakers”. Conclusions drawn from a sociolinguistic analysis of stances show that despite the vagueness and no clearly definable linguistic characteristics of the “native English” notion, its employment brought distinct negative effects to the participants’ experience. The contribution highlights the social constructivist character of the native/non-native dichotomy and draws attention to its adverse effects in the multilingual workplace

Patterns and Variation in English Language Discourse

The publication is reviewed post-conference proceedings from the international 9th Brno Conference on Linguistics Studies in English, held on 16–17 September 2021 and organised by the Faculty of Education, Masaryk University in Brno. The papers revolve around the themes of patterns and variation in specialised discourses (namely the media, academic, business, tourism, educational and learner discourses), effective interaction between the addressor and addressees and the current trends and development in specialised discourses. The principal methodological perspectives are the comparative approach involving discourses in English and another language, critical and corpus analysis, as well as identification of pragmatic strategies and appropriate rhetorical means. The authors of papers are researchers from the Czech Republic, Italy, Luxembourg, Serbia and Georgia

Trainees in an EU institution: Getting ready for a multilingual workplace

Institutions of the European Union welcome over 2,000 trainees every year (EPSO 2022). What can the young graduates learn about the specifics of language use in a multilingual workplace? To find out, the present sociolinguistic study interviewed 8 juniors (trainees) and 4 seniors (permanent employees) in a terminology and communication unit in an EU institution in Luxembourg. Qualitative data were collected from September 2020 to May 2021 in a participatory manner (McIntyre 2008), joining the recent interest in folklinguistic empowerment (Rymes 2021). The researcher took part in discussions with participants and encouraged their in-depth reflection on communication in the multilingual workplace. Iterative interviews, viewed as social interaction with critical reflective positioning of the researcher (Deppermann 2013), were accompanied by observation of meetings (online, due to Covid-19 pandemics), reflective drawing of metaphors by participants (Molinié 2009), and written reflections. Participants were free to define what language and multilingualism meant to them, as the study also aimed to avoid implicit methodological nationalism (Kraus 2018). Informed by the results of a pilot study in the same workplace (Lovrits and de Bres 2021), the collected data were subjected to a discursive analysis of stances (Jaffe 2009). Results showed that trainees’ understanding of language competence at work changed over the time. Aligning with stances of their supervisors towards the end of the traineeship stay, the juniors no longer focused on a linguistic standard in everyday communication. Instead, they began to pay more attention to the socio-emotional and relational aspects of their language use. The trainees reconstructed their understanding of (flexible) multilingualism as a basis for personal well-being at work and stopped fixating on formal linguistic "mistakes". Moreover, since research has emphasized socio-pragmatic diversity in the process of meaning making (Verschueren 2000), the seniors recognized the trainees' need to make the pragmatic aspects of everyday multilingualism explicit. This revelation has led to changes in language management in the workplace and has the potential to further inspire lifelong learning and professional development in the changing conditions of the global labour market (Budach and de Saint-Georges 2017). The findings are particularly relevant for professionals who facilitate transitions from monolingual to multilingual environments. The study reveals the importance of metalinguistic awareness in people coming from linguistically homogeneous settings into the so called "post-monolingual conditions" (Yildiz 2012) of an international workplace

On socially constructed aspects of language (in)competence: Raising critical language awareness in the multilingual workplace

In this theoretical contribution, I invite fellow researchers and managers to engage in a reflection on what is perceived as a competent language use at work. The objective is to open a broader discussion on seemingly obvious assumptions that may skew our understanding of everyday language practices. Critically reflected research review will point out to limitations of commonplace perspectives that mirror in managerial research and have implications for practice. Two questions will be discussed to raise critical awareness in the multilingual workplace: what linguistic norm sets the bar for the appropriateness of language use in the workplace, and whose interests does the language norm represent. This way, three problematic topics will be brought to attention: non acknowledged proliferation of linguistic concepts from education to workplace; questionable aptness of referring to standard language norm; and unacknowledged power plays fuelled by competing pragmatic needs of communicative partners. A reflection of power relations linked to norms and needs in the workplace may subsequently support a variety of practical managerial responses – ranging from a symbolic social acceptance of nonstandard language use to a decision to hire a professional linguistic service

Prestigious Language, Pigeonholed Speakers: Stances towards the "Native English Speaker" in a Multilingual European Institution

Critical sociolinguistics has demonstrated that the social construct of the “native speaker” has a strong impact on people’s lives, but research on “native speaker effects” in the workplace remains rare. This article examines such effects from the perspective of four “native English speaker” trainees on temporary contracts in a multilingual European Union institution in Luxembourg. Applying the framework of sociolinguistic stance to interview data and drawings, we examine how the participants position themselves towards the “native English speaker” construct at work, and how they think others position them. According to our participants, “native English speaker” positioning confers privilege but restricts opportunities, demonstrating that the interest of a multilingual organisation in using the “native English speaker” as a resource does not automatically provide a powerful position to “native English speaking” workers. Our results featuring trainees in precarious labour conditions raise broader issues regarding the precaritisation of language work in the EU

Monolingual cringe and ideologies of English: Anglophone migrants to Luxembourg draw their experiences in a multilingual society

This article uses reflective drawing to explore representations of multilingualism by Anglophone migrants in Luxembourg. Analysing twelve interviews in which participants drew and described their language experiences, we examine the language ideologies Anglophone migrants adopt in response to the ideologies of English they encounter. Participants adopt various ideologies, sometimes aligning with the ideology of global English, sometimes with counter-ideologies of resistance to it, and sometimes a mix of the two. Visual features indexing affective states include colour, gesture, facial expression, and composition. Monolingual cringe – expressed as shame, embarrassment and being ‘bad at languages’ – performs several functions for the participants. Sometimes it serves as an affective disclaimer, allowing them to lean on their privilege in a more socially acceptable way. Sometimes it appears to express genuine distress, in the form of searing linguistic insecurity. Sometimes it performs a distancing function, enabling them to oppose themselves to the stereotype of the monolingual English speaker. The affective intensity of the drawings suggests the ideology of global English does have costs for Anglophone migrants. Fundamentally, though, monolingual cringe reinforces privilege, allowing participants to apologise for their monolingualism even as they continue to benefit from it