Parallel use of English and Finnish at workplace
At the Infrastructure for Learning and Research at Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, approximately 20% of staff are native speakers of a language other than Finnish. The working language in the unit is mostly English. English is used almost exclusively when at least one non-Finnish-speaking employee is present.
However, for Finnish speaking employees being able to use their native language has been found to be important in order to feel safe. This especially when discussing e.g. contractual employment relationships. Brainstorming and in-depth discussions have also been found to be more rewarding when participants are given the option of using their native language.
Every third meeting is in Finnish
Following this, the unit is experimenting with using parallel languages. For example, presentations for all staff events are in English but participants are invited to ask questions in English and Finnish.
Additionally, one of the unit’s five team leaders is not a native Finnish speaker. Despite this, team leaders have agreed to hold every third weekly team leader meeting in Finnish. After the meeting, the international employee and their supervisor revise what was discussed and agreed in the meeting. According to Workshop Master and team leader Slate Grove, following meetings in Finnish is not easy. However, the support offered by the supervisor is helpful, and the meetings in Finnish provide an opportunity to learn new work-related words and phrases.
Multilingualism also poses challenges. Writing messages in two languages takes more time even with good language proficiency. In addition, language technology does not yet solve every problem: translation software helps, but using terminology that is specific to the work community would require artificial intelligence. Furthermore, the responsibility for translations cannot fall to an individual employee but lies with the sender of the message.
Investment in language skills support integration into the culture and work community
While language proficiency does not affect career progression in the unit, Finnish language learning by international employees is supported. They are allowed to participate in university language courses during work hours. Slate Grove considers staff-specific courses and study paths important so that staff members can study language separately from students. He also stresses that new employees should be given enough time to learn a new language.
Head of the unit Tapio Koskinen advises international employees to learn a local language even if they only come to Finland for a temporary stay. Otherwise, the local culture may remain out of reach. He advises employers to include international employees in their community, because formal orientation alone is insufficient.
Slate Grove agrees that learning a local language is important and that the work community plays a significant role. Colleagues can use humour to teach the language, and even the fact that others use Finnish motivates learning. Language proficiency is a pathway to culture and a citizenship requirement. Even so, Slate notes that practising Finnish requires persistence from the learner as people around them may be prone to switching to English. His goal is to be able to actively participate in Finnish-language discussions at the workplace in the future.