Bias against accents rife

By ANGELA McCARTHY

"A good command of spoken English required ... "

Issues with voice take on a whole new meaning when it comes to accents. According to a Massey University study into how employers and recruitment agencies perceive English language proficiency, many immigrants are discriminated against because of their accents.

"I wanted to look into why people entering the country with relatively high levels of English weren't getting jobs," explains the study's author, Dr Anne Henderson, of the university's social policy and research centre.

She found British and American accents were more acceptable than non-Western accents, although South African accents were discriminated against as well.

Dr Henderson surveyed engineering, ICT and local government employers and recruitment agencies, as well as the health sector.

"These are the areas where most skilled immigrants entering New Zealand have qualifications to work."

Only three of the agencies surveyed used formal English tests to judge whether an applicant had a good command of English. But English proficiency was consistently rated the most important factor in hiring of immigrants.

"I asked which level of proficiency was required of jobs at junior, middle and senior level, native speaker fluency or native speaker fluency with a New Zealand accent. It was alarming how many respondents felt you needed a New Zealand accent.

"This means, no matter how well you speak English and how good your qualifications and experience, a non-New Zealand accent is a disadvantage."

Henderson points out skilled immigrants must gain an IELTS (internationally devised tests of English ability) score of 6.5 before the New Zealand immigration service accepts them. Such scores reflect a good grasp of English.

"IELTS doesn't look at accent unless it impedes communication. One accent is no better than another. I believe that recruiters are crossing the border and becoming discriminatory," says Henderson.

As adults, immigrants will not be able to shed their accents and sound Kiwi, says Henderson, and why should they? "Their accent is part of who they are."

However, she agrees it helps listeners if speakers use familiar language, Kiwisms.

Jane Kennelly, Frog Recruitment managing director, says the agency sometimes deals with applicants who are extremely difficult to understand because of their accents.

"When this happens we will say we're having difficulty understanding their English and suggest they get some practise by attending a community centre or school course.

"We find people appreciate the positive feedback. We feel we have to be responsible and we encourage them to return."

Communications consultant Margaret Fleming agrees."The important thing is to get practise listening and talking Kiwi English from Kiwi speakers."

Accents can be a positive attribute, says Kennelly. Many clients want to mirror Auckland's cultural diversity, particularly contact centre clients, and they are happy to have people with a range of accents on their phones.

Roseann Gedye, communications consultant and part-time senior lecturer on Unitec's bachelor of international communications course, often tells immigrants to slow down, particularly on the phone.

"The audience or person on the end of the phone is having to adjust to your accent. You need to go slower and realise we have to get our ear accustomed to your accent, just as you have had to adjust to the Kiwi accent."

It definitely cuts both ways, agrees Maggie Eyre, author of Speak Easy: The Essential Guide to Speaking in Public, who recalls a Hawaiian friend saying she would need to talk more slowly when doing a presentation in Hawaii if she wanted to be understood.

"Kiwis often speak too quickly and our vocal expression is clipped and disconnected from expressive body language," says Eyre.

Henderson hopes the study will influence people into thinking about what they view as communication proficiency and try to listen rather than switching off the minute they hear something different.