How to Promote a Speak Up Culture in Your Multilingual Workforce

During the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination increased drastically. One of the largest increases occurred in Vancouver, which saw a 717 percent increase in hate crimes, and those are just the ones that were reported. To keep the city’s population safe, the Vancouver Police Department created a hate crime reporting portal, but there was one glaring issue: victims could only report in simplified Chinese. After backlash from the community, the VPD added other language options to the form, including traditional and simplified Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Punjabi, Tagalog and Vietnamese.

This example proves the importance of options when encouraging people to speak up. While some reporters might have known Chinese and could have reported in that language, many did not, or were not comfortable enough with it to submit a thorough report comfortably.

The same ideas apply to your workplace reporting mechanisms. If you have a multilingual workforce, offer choices that empower all your employees to speak up to protect themselves and your organization. Learn how and why in our guide below.

What Is the Importance of a Speak Up Culture in the Workplace?

As the name suggests, a workplace speak up culture values openness. If employees witness an incident, have a concern about an organizational policy, or simply have a question, they can bring it up to anyone within the organization. In return, the company addresses all employee reports and maintains a zero-tolerance policy for retaliation against reporters.

A speak up culture builds mutual respect between employer and employee. Organizations with this type of culture apply policies equally; for example, the CEO would be reprimanded in the same way as a new, low-level employee for the same offense. Bias and unethical behavior have no place in a speak up culture.

But why does this type of culture matter?

In a workplace culture where employees feel safe and are encouraged to raise issues, everybody wins. Employees know that you’ll take their concerns seriously and that they won’t experience retaliation if they report an issue, no matter what or who it involves.

When employees feel safe reporting, you’ll uncover problems faster, before they have time to balloon into widespread, expensive incidents. You’ll also reduce your risk of non-compliance fines and lawsuits, as your investigation process is probably more open, compliant, and unbiased. Finally, your organization will gain a reputation as a place where employees are empowered and that operates ethically, attracting new applicants and customers.

READ MORE: What is a Speak Up Culture? (and Why Your Organization Needs One)

Why Should I Offer a Multilingual Whistleblower Platform?

Even if you conduct business in one language, offering unilingual reporting options won’t work for many organizations. Not sure if you should expand your whistleblowing language offerings? Consider the following circumstances.

First, is your organization based in a bilingual country like Canada, India, or Belgium? Because these countries have multiple official languages, you might be required by law to allow your employees to work or serve customers in more than one language. These protections would also include the right for employees to communicate in their official language of choice in the workplace, including reporting incidents and submitting internal complaints.

Next, does your company operate in multiple countries that speak different languages? Large corporations with offices worldwide need to be able to communicate with all their employees easily and swiftly. Waiting for a translator to interpret a report could mean the difference between a minor issue and a widespread, damaging incident.

Finally, consider if any of your employees work in one language but prefer to speak another in their personal lives. This is probably more common in cities with large immigrant populations but can occur anywhere. Just because an employee speaks a language for their job doesn’t mean that they have the skills to articulate an issue in that language, especially if they’re in distress after an incident like harassment or discrimination. Offering a multilingual whistleblower platform ensures you get a thorough description of every incident and that employees feel safe and comfortable speaking up.

Tools to Encourage Your Multilingual Workforce to Speak Up

To establish a true speak up culture, you have to empower all employees. This prevents discrimination and ensures every employee feels valued. It also increases the odds that you’ll uncover more issues through reports, reducing organizational risk.

Implementing a speak up culture in a unilingual organization is tough on its own; adding multilingual capabilities makes the process even more complex. That’s why you need the right tools to help you start and maintain your open culture.

First, you need a multilingual whistleblower platform. If an employee opens a form or calls a number only to be met with a language they don’t speak well or at all, they’re likely to abandon their report, which puts them and your company at risk. Offering service in multiple languages, however, shows that you want to give every employee a voice. Case IQ’s platform now utilizes WhistleBlower Security’s Global Ethics Hotline, where employees can talk to an agent in English, French, Spanish, or dozens of other languages, making reporting easy for all.

Next, look for a case management tool with built-in translation capabilities. Case IQ’s new AI-powered Translation Copilot automatically detects and translates communications between the reporter and the investigator, including the initial report and follow-up messages. Because they don’t have to manually translate documents themselves or send them off to a translator, investigators will save time and resolve incidents faster.

How Case IQ Can Help

Case IQ’s ethics hotline, powered by WhistleBlower Security, supports over 150 languages as well as hearing and speech impairments. Our multichannel intake options help you encourage a transparent workplace culture where employees feel empowered to speak up. Learn more here.