Linguistic diversity is an essential segment in the uniqueness

of communitys identity, which stimulate and support new

ways of thinking, exchange, creativity and innovation. It does
to only apply to how different words are spoken in different
languages as when English 'dog' shows up in Spanish as
perro or in Japanese as inu , but language diversity comes
into play with different pronunciation, vocabulary and
grammar which stimulates from different cultural
background.
India is a wholly diversified multilingual country with 22
languages being officially recognised. English and Hindi are
the two most common languages used by the central
government, given no one language as the official status of
national language of India.
The composition of the workforce has grown increasingly
more diverse ethnically and with that language diversity has
become an unavoidable concept. Thereby impeding safety,
efficiency, harmony, productivity, and possibly alienate a
customer base. Certain employers as a result believe there is
a need to adopt English-only policies to combat what they
feel is too much diversity in language at the workplace.
Moreover, the more culturally diverse the country and the
workforce become, the more important, it is often asserted,
will it be to have a common language. As such, certain
employers have adopted restrictive language policies
prohibiting their workers from speaking Tamil, Kannad,
Marathi, Punjabi as well as other languages other than
English and Hindi. Employers contend these policies are
necessary because speaking a language not understood by
customers or fellow employees is inefficient and
unproductive as well as perceived as rude and insensitive.
Safety concerns are another often-cited reason for English-
only rules, for example, in a hospital emergency room or
operating room setting, in an oil refinery or on an oil rig, or
on a production line, where clear, quick, and understandable
communication is critical. It is equally difficult to manage
someone with whom one cannot communicate due to
language barrier. For example some poor performing
employees use the language barrier to their advantage to
avoid having to change their behaviour. Rather than being a
true barrier, the employee tries to manipulate the manager
by claiming a failure to communicate

Most Indians that you will do business with speak English at a

high level. However understanding the linguistic talents of
Indians will give you a lot more respect for their abilities and
make you less likely to correct any inconsequential errors
you notice. A persons mother-tongue is a very special and
intimate part of their being. If one is careful enough to
respect the linguistic differences, it will build a lot
of relational capital. It is important to recognize that when
you work with a group of Indians, you should insist on people
using a language that is universally known and most
comfortable. For example, if you are in Chennai with a group
of familiars and a few northerners mixed in, you should insist
on the team using English and not Tamil for the sake of those
who will feel uncomfortable and left out. In such situation
one group tends to dominate the other, reducing the input of
other socially exclusive group, as a result, discrimination can
occur based on the language a person speaks. Socialization
processes too, such as building of trust and relationships
among team members, are language dependent.

Employers, therefore, must be careful that they do not get

caught in a legal and ethical language squeeze between
conflicting stakeholder demands, in particular the rights of
people who only speak their native language in the
workplace and the rights of other people who do not speak
native language or whose primary language is not the native
one. The rapidly changing demographics of the population
and the workforce brought about by high levels of
immigration, combined with the needs of employers to
conduct their businesses in a diverse and global
environment, will force many employers to confront the
highly contentious and challenging legal, ethical, and
practical issue of language in the workplace, particularly
concerning English only and English fluency rules. In light of
this backdrop of increasing diversity in workforce, a business
manager may then ponder how to avoid running afoul of
language discrimination lawsuits. Thus the English-only rule
is becoming a common feature of workplace culture,
employment and management as employers increasingly
aggressive recruitment of bilingual employees.