Concord nursing home worker banned from speaking Spanish at work receives monetary settlement

Employers can impose restrictions on languages spoken by workers if required for safe or efficient business operations, but not for discriminatory reasons, regulator says.

A housekeeper in a Concord nursing home who was allegedly banned from speaking her native Spanish at work is to receive monetary damages in a settlement with her employer, according to a federal workplace regulator.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which announced the settlement, said it had investigated and found evidence that Pennsylvania-based Healthcare Services Group imposed an “English-only” rule in violation of the federal Civil Rights Act.

After that finding, the company, which works in 48 states, agreed in negotiations with the housekeeper to pay her monetary damages, the commission said Wednesday. The amount of the damages, and name of the worker, were not disclosed.

Healthcare Services Group — which manages housekeeping, laundry, dining, and nutritional services — also agreed to revise its policies and procedures in California to ensure employees can speak their preferred language at work. The policies must be issued in English, Spanish and any other language spoken by 5% or more of its California workforce, the agency said.

Employers can impose restrictions on languages spoken by workers if required for safe or efficient business operations, but not for discriminatory reasons, said Rosa Salazar, acting director of the agency’s Oakland office.

“Client relations and customer preference do not justify discriminatory policies,” Salazar said, adding that the settlement requires the company to train its California workforce “to recognize and prevent this form of national origin discrimination.”

The company did not respond to questions about the allegations of an “English-only” workplace rule.