Interpreters Expose LanguageLine Solutions for Undermining Service Quality with Low Wages and Stressful Working Conditions

Workers report high turnover and inadequate training at the global leader in interpretation services, with punishing working conditions that leave interpreters with no time to recover after telling a client, "Their child passed away; they have been diagnosed with terminal diseases; and witnessing the [client] crying uncontrollably."

MONTEREY, CALIF. - American workers with LanguageLine Solutions (LLS) are petitioning their employer to respect their employment contracts and pay interpreters for the number of hours they were contracted to work after a new survey exposed the company's poor treatment of its professional interpreters. These interpreters work to support Limited English Proficient people (LEPs) in a variety of important interactions with government agencies, healthcare providers, courts, law enforcement, and private businesses.

A new survey conducted by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) shows that interpreters face stressful working conditions, inadequate training, and low pay, leading to high turnover and putting at risk the quality of service they are able to provide. LLS interpreters are forming a union with CWA to address the working conditions that harm the interpreters and those that they serve.

Language interpreting is mental and emotional labor. Interpreting between two languages in even everyday interactions takes concentrated effort on the part of the interpreter. In the case of tense, emotional conversations, like in courtrooms and with healthcare providers, interpreting can be very emotionally taxing.

A large majority of respondents (83%) felt that their ability to interpret well is impacted negatively by LLS policies that push interpreters to take calls back-to-back. A Language Line interpreter explained, "There's no break between the calls. After telling an LEP (Limited English Proficient client) their child passed away, they have been diagnosed with terminal diseases, and witnessing the LEP crying uncontrollably, LLS should provide us a few minutes to recover from it."

LanguageLine interpreters shared their alarm that workers are not receiving adequate training to interpret for complex or specialized calls, like in legal or healthcare settings. A majority (52%) reported that they have interpreted for people involved in legal cases without training on legal terminology. Forty percent reported that they interpreted for people facing medical issues without training on medical terminology. The lack of training can have dramatic consequences for clients when interpreters are assigned to calls outside of their level of expertise.

"After working for LanguageLine for ten years with no raise and bonuses, I feel exploited and mentally burnt out," said Agnieszka Lamirowska, an LLS interpreter. "I believe that a union would mean better representation of workers' interests, protection from unfair treatment, better wages and benefits, and a strong collective voice in the workplace. I want to be proud of what I do, and I believe that if we had a voice in our working conditions, we could make LanguageLine a place where we could be proud to work."

"Qualified Interpreters are leaving LanguageLine Solutions because of low wages and the constant threat of termination based on AI performance guidelines, which are not shared with interpreters," said Nonèse Kissane, an LLS Haitian Creole Medical interpreter. "Honestly, our work suffers from AI making managerial decisions that are unreliable and causing chaos."

"My hours have been cut in half, and my income reduced by as much as 75%, making it nearly impossible to live with dignity," said Aizo Nokes, an LLS interpreter. "This struggle reminds me of my grandfather, who stood up for workers in the 1950s. I, too, feel the responsibility to speak out. Joining a union is the answer to our prayers and the way to turn our voices into real change."

LanguageLine Solutions was acquired by the French multinational Teleperformance in 2016. LLS employs thousands of interpreters across the country and claims to serve more than 30,000 clients worldwide. As a subsidiary of Teleperformance, LLS is party to the Teleperformance-UNI Global Agreement on Social Responsibility, which affords workers the right to organize a union free of management interference and intimidation. However, the company is refusing to implement the agreement in the United States.

Workers are now speaking out, with hundreds signing on to a petition to their employer. CWA is encouraging LanguageLine clients to investigate potential harms to service quality from poor working conditions as documented in this report.

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About CWA: The Communications Workers of America represents working people in telecommunications, customer service, media, airlines, health care, public service and education, manufacturing, tech, and other fields.

cwa-union.org @cwaunion