[Foundation-l] Plea for candidates: WMF Movement Communications Manager

[Fred Bauder]

> On Fri, Apr 15, 2011 at 12:42, Fred Bauder <fredbaud at fairpoint.net>
> wrote:
>>> I understood that they wanted someone who was ideally *not* a native
>>> English speaker. That was something that concerned me when I read it,
>>> because it looked as if the intention was to disadvantage applicants
>>> who had English as a first language. Or did I misunderstand it?
>>>
>>> "Demonstrated ability to work (speak, read, write at a professional
>>> level) effectively in a language other than English (ideally as a
>>> native speaker)"
>>
>> English speakers and Europeans generally, such as you and I, dominate
>> most Wikimedia conversations. I doubt anyone could function in this
>> position if they didn't understand English, but our hope is to get the
>> rest of the world involved.
>>
>> However it is hard to imagine an ideal second language that is not
>> European; only Arabic is spoken by a large diverse population with
>> internet access.
>>
> Is that kind of bias against national origin allowed when hiring?
>

I don't think it is bias. Giving extra attention to the global south is a
legitimate goal. Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, French, English, and
Chinese are commonly spoken there. There are different considerations
with respect to each language. Actually I think more people speak Hindi
than speak English.

Fred