English Only Rules
Many organizations find themselves confronted by seemingly conflicting regulations when it comes to whether it is permissible to mandate that only English be spoken in the workplace. Often employers consider such a requirement as a result of safety concerns, because of regulation in their particular industry or the desire to mitigate employee relations problems which may arise as a result of cultural differences in the workplace.
The EEOC provides some specific guidelines in this area and, not surprisingly, frowns upon such rules where they prohibit employees on breaks and meal periods from speaking a language other than English. There is a fundamental difference between requiring employees to only speak English in the workplace and a requirement that they have the ability to read and write English. The latter does not prohibit them from speaking other languages while the former does. Follow this link for more on the EEOC's guidance on English Only Rules.