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1st Amendment and Free Speech/discrimination for use of Spanish at work

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Expert: - 2/4/2008


Question
My husband works for CBS radio and he was told today he is not allow to use Spanish within the office, however, he has sold quite a few radio ads to Hispanic clients by approaching them in Spanish and perusing them to advertise in English radio.
Is this a violation of the first amendment?
He doesn't make personal calls from the office, his calls are exclusively business to business.

Regards,
Claudia

Answer
Hi Claudia,

Please keep in mind that I cannot provide specific legal advice in this forum.  However, generally speaking, private employers may have an "English only" policy at work.  Private employers are not bound by First Amendment restrictions.

There is some argument that at least some English only policies may be discriminatory, depending on the reasons for the policy and how implemented.  This EEOC article discusses in more detail:

http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/national-origin.html#VC1

I hope this helps!
- Mike  

1st Amendment and Free Speech

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Michael Troy

Expertise

I will answer general questions regarding freedom of speech, petition, or religion. I specialize in cases involving public employment or education, as well as issues related to campaign finance. But I can`t give specific legal advice involving specific cases you might have.

Experience

As an attorney for the Center for Individual Rights, I worked on a number of free speech cases, including Rosenberger v. Univ. of Virginia, in which the Supreme Court upheld my clients' right to run a student newspaper without discrimination because of its religious conent. I also worked on White v. Julian, which protected the right of people to protest against a homeless shelter in their neighborhood.

I also worked for the Federal Election Commission on several cases regarding the right to participate in the election process.

Organizations
Former Attorney for Center for Individual Rights.

Publications
Washington Post
Washington Times

Education/Credentials
J.D. from Univ. of Michigan Law School

Awards and Honors
Truman Scholar

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