Historical time for the interpreter voice to be heard.

Dear Colleagues:

Now for several months, every time I talk to one of you, or I read something about the profession, there seems to be a common trend, a constant presence: Interpreting as a profession is been targeted by many different special interest groups.

There are those who seek a huge profit by applying technology and keeping the economic advantage of doing so without sharing with the interpreter, and in fact, reducing the fee they pay either by lowering the amount, or developing a series of strategies designed to leave the interpreter out in the cold.

Then you have those who want to make a living or “comply” with a legal requirement by lowering the standards of the profession, and setting rock-bottom requirements to work, or even creating a brand new branch of interpreting that they found inside the hat where they keep the rabbit. Stingy and ignorant local government agencies and some unscrupulous language training entities fit this description.

We even have the troubling developments that we are currently witnessing with the United States immigration courts, and the tragedy of a few years ago with the United Kingdom judicial interpreters; both of them leaving many of our colleagues in a horrible financial situation and “inspiring” other governments to emulate their questionable, and frankly despicable way of doing business.

Add to all of the above the ever shrinking fees at the courthouses and hospitals, the ever-deteriorating system of the federal court panel attorney payments for interpreting services in the United States, and the fewer conferences in many cities around the world.

At the time when the world population and media is more aware of the need of the interpreter than ever before, this tragic report could be depressing and discouraging; however, it can also be a unique time in history for the interpreting profession. You see, my friends and colleagues, I see what is happening all around us as a tremendous opportunity, which does not come along very often, to change our careers forever. I believe that the time has come for all of us to stand up and fight for the full professionalization and recognition of the extremely difficult and vital work we perform around the clock and around the world.

I firmly believe, and those of you who follow me on social media have noticed, that this is our time to seize the current situation and turn it into an opportunity to impact the interpreting profession for good. I honestly think that if we unite with our fellow translator friends and colleagues, who are going through a similar situation with lower fees, poor quality machine translations, and knowledge-lacking clients and agencies who want to treat them (and pay them) as proof readers and not as professional translators.  I believe that we have so many common interests and a shared desire to have our two professions respected and recognized once and for all.

These are the reasons why, despite my truly busy schedule and comfortable economic and professional situation, I decided to run for the board of directors of the American Translators Association (ATA)

As a total outsider who has decades of experience as an interpreter that has been successful at creating a name, providing a top quality service , and generating a pretty good income, I am convinced that I can offer you all, a voice within the board of the most important and influential interpreter and translator organization in the world. I will bring a different perspective: that of a true full-time experienced professional who has no strings attached to anyone or anything in the organization because of past dealings or compromises that past leaders sometime have.

I bring to the position my determination to tackle the important issues that put our professionalization at risk, such as deplorable negotiating positions before powerful entities who take advantage of their size and economic power; I want to be on the board to make sure that the certification standards proposed and applied by some entities who care about profit and not the quality of the service, do not continue; and if they do, that ATA will not recognize them as equivalent to a real certification or licensing program with the required professional standards.

I am convinced that if I am part of the board, the interpreter community will have a louder voice that reflects our size within the organization, not to argue or create roadblocks, but to enrich the debate with our perspective. Because of my constant travels all over the world, I know the problems faced by interpreters and translators at this time, and I also realize that many of them have the same source and therefore need a common solution.  My years of experience have given me the opportunity to meet so many of the ATA members of the board. There are many who I admire and respect. I have no doubt that we will get along and fight together for the organization, the individual interpreters and translators, but more importantly: for the professions.

Being an outsider to the leadership, but being also a member who is closely acquainted with the functions of a professional association, and participates in dozens of conferences and associations’ general meetings throughout the world, I think I can help the membership grow by simply presenting to the board the concerns and complaints I constantly hear everywhere, starting with: Why should I join ATA? What benefits will I get?

Dear friends and colleagues, for years ATA voting privileges were confined to the certified translators and a few interpreters. Presently, as a result of the associations’ recognition of its interpreter membership, you can become a voting member by a very quick and easy process that will take you less than five minutes. All you need to do is visit:  http://www.atanet.org/membership/memb_review_online.php

Please do it now as the eligibility to vote on this coming election will only include those who completed the process before the end of the month.

Once you are eligible to vote you have to choices: vote live during the ATA annual conference in Miami, or vote ahead of time. I suggest that you vote ahead of time regardless of your plans to attend the conference. This is too important to leave it to your good fortune and you never know what can happen.

Finally, I believe that we can accomplish many things together.  That we can contribute to the advancement of our profession and that of ATA by following these three simple steps: (1) Follow the link above and become eligible to vote. (2) Vote as soon as you can. Do not wait until the conference, and (3) Think carefully about who you are voting for. Thank you very much.

When the interpreter does not know how to work with the tech team.

Dear Colleagues:

Some months ago the event technician approached me during a break and told me a story that made me think of a very important aspect of our practice that is rarely mentioned.  He said that during the prior weekend he had worked a conference with two interpreters he did not know (something extraordinaire for this individual who has worked with just about everybody).

Apparently, the agency had brought them from out of town because they wanted to abate their costs, and from the information the technician gathered, they were court interpreters with very little conference experience. According to him, they were very quiet and not very helpful, and to the dismay of the technician, he even had to decide the location of the booth in the conference room because the interpreters did not make any suggestions or give any input.  He also commented that the quality of the interpretation was poor.

Of course a story like this one frustrates me, as I see once again that there are many in this business with total devotion to the old mighty dollar and total contempt for the quality of the service; but it made me think about the importance of a good relationship with the tech staff.  It is obvious that it does not matter how well-prepared we are for an event if at the time of the rendition we cannot hear the speaker because of a sound system that was not tested, we cannot see the presentation on the screen because of poor location of the booth, or the audience cannot hear a word of what we are saying because of an equipment malfunction. It is essential that we learn how to work with the technician, and this includes not just being nice to the individual, but also our ability to use the equipment, our opinion as to the location of the booth, our willingness to participate in the final run through so that all microphones and consoles are tested and all levels are adjusted.

It is also very helpful to have a communication strategy. Sometimes the technician is next to the booth, but there are times when they are very far away from the interpreters. For this reason, having agreed to some signs and gestures ahead of time will let the technician know that something is bleeding into the system, that a relay button is not working, and many other things.

I have been in situations where the event organizer refuses to pay for a dedicated technician throughout the event, and everybody can tell the difference: When something goes wrong and the technician is there, things get solved and the conference continues. Things can get ugly when there is no technician on the premises, and there are just so many coffee breaks the participants can have while a well-intentioned but unskilled individual tries to fix a problem.

We interpreters should always consider the technician as part of our team. We cannot work without them, so we should include their function when developing our master plan for an event. Besides, having the tech support staff on your side can get you additional benefits: They are often some of the first ones to know of an event, and many times they are asked by agencies and event organizers to suggest interpreters for conferences.  We should recommend the good technicians and in turn they will put out a good word for you.

As you see, this conversation with my technician friend and colleague got me thinking of the importance of their job and how it impacts us professionally as interpreters. It made me pledge that I will never be like the interpreters he worked with the prior weekend who were quiet, had no opinions, and did not know how to work with the technician.  I now invite you to share with the rest of us your comments and stories about your relationship with the technical staff.

Why do we celebrate Labor Day in September in the United States?

Dear Colleagues,

For those of you who are reading this blog in the United States: Happy Labor Day!

Yes, this Monday is Labor Day in the United States and we celebrate it as a major holiday; one of those “real” holidays when the banks are closed, the mail is not delivered, and kids stay home from school. I have been asked many times by my foreign friends and colleagues why is it that we celebrate Labor Day in September instead of May 1^st. like most countries in Europe, Latin America, and elsewhere do. Then, the second question that always follows the one above is: “But the labor movement celebrated with an international holiday on May 1^st. commemorates the events of Chicago in 1886…”

The fact is that most Americans have never heard of the events of 1886 when a peaceful labor rally in Haymarket Square in Chicago suddenly turned violent after police arrived and ordered the meeting to end. A bomb was thrown into the crowd, and the police started to shoot and beat the crowd. In a matter of minutes eight people were killed and over 120 police and civilians were injured.  The police seized the opportunity to arrest eight anarchists, that perhaps today would be referred to as labor rights activists, and the authorities charged them with conspiracy to commit murder even though the police had sparked the riot. Seven of the eight arrested were sentenced to death, and one of the jurors at their trial was a relative of one of the dead police officers.  This is how the labor movement started in the United States.  For a long time the media and government were firmly allied with the business community while labor organizers were viewed as criminals.

Today in the United States labor unions are controversial, and with good reason.  Many of them have been run as criminal enterprises, with deep connections to organized crime; many operate in a blatantly coercive and undemocratic fashion.  Union demands and strong-arm tactics have crippled some American industries and limited the number of jobs.  In today’s America the unions get publicity when they step up to defend a member who should be punished, when the baseball players’ union fights suspension of players who have cheated by using steroids, or when the union protects incompetent teachers in public schools. There are many who support organized labor, although it seems to be less people every day, and labor rights are a good thing that America needed in the 19^th. century and still needs today; however, the real perception (well-deserved in many cases) that unions are troublemakers, and the national fight against communism from the cold war days, have put these events in Chicago at the end of the 19^th. century in the forgotten corner of American history.

Our Labor Day holiday is very different from most around the world. Instead of commemorating a tragic event, we celebrate those who have contributed to America’s social and economic achievements with their work. Since 1882 we have celebrated labor on the first Monday in September as a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the United States. Labor Day has come to be considered by most Americans as the end of summer; the last barbecue of the year, the beginning of football season, the start of a new school year.   This weekend millions of Americans will gather around the grill, at the shopping malls, and football fields, to officially end this year’s summer.  It is perhaps the second most American of all holidays (after Thanksgiving that is) because it describes the mind and spirit of the American people.  Regardless of your political persuasion and your support, love, disdain or indifference towards organized labor, the first Monday in September is a holiday when Americans decided to celebrate work and creativity while most of the world chose to commemorate a tragic event that happened on American soil but is unknown to an overwhelming majority of the American people.  I hope this brief explanation of the reasons why Americans are staying home on Monday celebrating a holiday with the same name as another holiday celebrated abroad, but with a very different meaning and motivation behind it, helps you understand better the United States. Now, without bringing up any political views on the labor movement, I ask you to please share with us when it is that you observe Labor Day in your respective countries and why it is a holiday there.