Handbook

Community Language Allowance Scheme

Introduction

The Community Language Allowance Scheme (CLAS) provides an allowance, additional to salary, paid by New South Wales Government agencies to selected employees who use a language other than English to communicate with clients, as part of their normal duties.

Background

The NSW Government is committed to creating a world class public sector characterised by better quality and more responsive and effective service delivery. Quality customer service includes providing accessible and quality programs and service consistent with the principles of access and equity.

Since July 1989 it has been the policy of the New South Wales Government that agencies fund the provision of language services (that is interpreters and translated material) when dealing with clients. This assists in the provision of access to services by all clients.

According to the 2001 census, 4% of people in NSW do not speak English well or at all. For these people to access government services, agencies must provide language assistance programs. At the same time, over 19% of people in NSW speak a language other than English, thousands of whom work in NSW Government agencies. These language skills can be used by government agencies in their customer service areas to assist clients to access their services.

The Community Language Allowance Scheme (CLAS) draws on the language skills of agency employees. It remunerates employees who are selected for the CLAS and use community language skills, as part of or in addition to their normal duties. CLAS recipients assist in the communication between other English speaking employees and clients who do not speak English well or at all.

Employees who use their language skills in this way are paid the Community Language Allowance by their agency.

When to use CLAS and when to use interpreters

The Community Language Allowance Scheme has been established to address the need for government agencies to provide on-the-spot assistance for simple, uncomplicated matters. Some examples include answering counter inquiries, providing directions to another office, or making appointments for a further visit.

For matters that will take a longer time, or require an in-depth or formal interview, agencies should use interpreters. This is necessary for two reasons: CLAS recipients may not have professional qualifications in interpreting which are highly desirable for more extended interviews. In addition, as CLAS duties are additional to a normal, full or part-time working load, it is expected that work through the CLAS scheme will not impact significantly on the employee’s other working commitments.

Professional qualifications in interpreting are obtained through the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI).

Qualifying to receive the allowance under the CLAS

Employees must be nominated by their employing agency to receive an allowance under the Community Language Allowance Scheme. They must qualify for an allowance in one of two ways: by passing an examination administered by the Community Relations Commission For a multicultural NSW, by having NAATI accreditation at interpreter level, or by having a language recognition award from NAATI.

The allowance is not payable to employees who are employed as interpreters and translators or who work in positions where particular language skills are part of the essential requirements of the position.

The allowance is payable to staff who have passed the examination or have NAATI qualifications and are:

1. public contact staff, counter staff or other clerical staff who, by possessing language skills, are required to deal with public inquiries;
2. identified as possessing another language skill for the purpose of the work of the organisation;
3. available to use the language skill as required by the organisation; and
4. recognised by management as occasional or regular users of their language skills as an adjunct to their normal duties.

Examination arrangements for CLAS

An examination of language competency is conducted by the Commission and usually takes place annually. Advertisements are placed in the Public Sector Notices.

It is the responsibility of the nominating agency to meet the cost of the examination for nominated staff.

Where an agency requires a staff member to be examined as a matter of urgency, the agency should contact the Commission.

A number of public sector staff may hold certificates issued by the Commission or the former Public Service Board of NSW, which has a time limit on its currency (usually ten years). The Commission can renew these certificates following confirmation of continuous use of the language and upon payment of a renewal fee. No examination is required to be undertaken in these circumstances unless requested by the staff member concerned.

Rate of the allowance

The rate of allowance is contained in the CLAS determination issued by the Premier’s Department. There are two levels of allowance - a base level rate and a higher level rate.

The base level rate is paid to staff who, in addition to the requirements of 4(a) to 4(d) above, are required to meet occasional demands for language assistance. Occasional demands mean that there is no regular pattern of demands that necessitate the use of the staff member’s language skills.

The higher level rate is one and a half times the base allowance. It is paid to staff who, in addition to the requirements of 4(a) to 4(d) above, meet any of the following criteria:

• regularly meet high levels of customer demand involving a regular pattern of usage of the staff members’ language skills.
• have achieved qualifications of NAATI interpreter level and above. This recognises that staff with higher levels of language skills will communicate with an enhanced degree of efficiency and effectiveness.

Agencies are responsible for determining which types of work attract the higher level of the allowance, besides the NAATI interpreter level identified above. In order to make this decision, agencies may initially request non NAATI accredited staff to keep records of CLAS usage. This will help establish whether there is a high level of customer demand relative to other CLAS recipients in the agency.

Determining agency needs for CLAS recipients

Agencies are responsible for implementing and monitoring the Community Language Allowance Scheme in their agency. The following steps are a part of good practice and guide for CLAS in an agency:

• survey employees to determine the range of languages available and their locations. Make this part of the induction to assist in keeping records up-to-date;
• survey employees at customer contact points to determine the need for language assistance by clients. Do this as part of an agency planning cycle;
• analyse the language needs to determine those needs that could be met by a CLAS recipient and those requiring an interpreter;
• integrate CLAS functions into a customer service plan;
• call for nominations from staff for CLAS testing from locations where CLAS could be used effectively or from staff who wish to have NAATI qualifications recognised;
• determine which employees should be accepted for CLAS testing or should have their NAATI qualifications recognised;
• arrange for testing for those employees who do not have NAATI qualifications and request documentation of NAATI qualifications from those claiming NAATI accreditation at interpreter level;
• pilot the CLAS scheme and after six months review it to identify the appropriate payment of the two levels of the allowance.

Monitoring and reviewing CLAS

The continuing worth in an agency of the Community Language Allowance Scheme depends on regular monitoring and reviewing of the implementation of the scheme. Such monitoring should include the following:

• languages used;
• the level of demand;
• types of matters dealt with by CLAS recipients.

It may be useful for CLAS recipients to maintain a log of their CLAS duties to facilitate the monitoring of the scheme in the agency.

The outcomes of monitoring should lead to a report reviewing the scheme that includes recommendations for the program in the following year.

Recommendations may include changes in the languages and/or the locations covered by CLAS, changes in interpreter use and changes in the level of payment.

Recommendations may also include the cessation of CLAS payments to recipients where the circumstances are no longer justified. Agencies should ensure there has been prior consultation with the staff member concerned so that sufficient time is given to enable the staff member to adjust their personal circumstances prior to the payment ceasing.

A further aspect of this monitoring is the need to ensure that CLAS recipients continue to apply their language skill at the competency level required by CLAS. If the agency becomes aware that a staff member’s language skill may no longer meet this competency level, then the agency has a responsibility to both the staff member and its customers to improve the competency level. This is best achieved by consulting with the staff member regarding appropriate training (refer chapter 11) or agency support for enhancing their language skill.

Following this process, the agency may also require the staff member, if considered necessary, to undertake the examination of language competency conducted by the Commission.

It is recommended that the scheme be monitored yearly, or no less frequently than two yearly, with the results of the review being incorporated into the agency’s scheme during the following year.

Responsibilities of CLAS recipients

CLAS recipients are responsible for the following:

• providing timely and accurate language assistance;
• keeping informed about agency services and referral points;
• determining if a matter is formal or sufficiently complex to warrant the use of interpreters and notifying the appropriate person to ensure that this assistance is provided;
• keeping records of CLAS usage as required by the agency;
• notifying the manager or supervisor if the CLAS workload is excessive, that is, if the demand for CLAS assistance is impacting negatively on the employee’s normal workload;
• attending any training and information sessions on CLAS at the instruction of the agency.

Managers’ and supervisors’ responsibilities

The Community Language Allowance Scheme is a tool that aims to increase the quality of customer service. In order to ensure that CLAS operates effectively, managers and supervisors should ensure that the following aspects of the Scheme are implemented:

• the workload of CLAS recipients includes time for CLAS work;
• that sufficient employees are nominated for the CLAS to enable customer demand for language assistance to be met without excessive impact on the normal work of particular CLAS employees;
• that interpreters are used for matters that fall outside the provision of simple language assistance;
• that workloads are spread equitably within work groups and that certain employees are not given responsibility for looking after the clients of particular language groups;
• that CLAS recipients attend training and or monitoring sessions organised by the agency.

Training

Agencies are responsible for securing training and ongoing support for Community Language Allowance Scheme recipients.

Such training should include the following issues:

• agency expectations of the CLAS and of CLAS recipients;
• overview of the agency’s functions and operations;
• appropriate referral points for clients;
• rationale for the selection of languages and locations;
• guidelines for providing CLAS assistance and matters for which interpreters should be engaged;
• responsibilities for monitoring usage;
• reporting arrangements for difficulties which might occur and which fall outside the scope of the individual work unit.

Training in these issues should also be provided for managers and supervisors.

Such training should be supplemented by agency guidelines for the use of CLAS for reference by CLAS recipients, managers and supervisors.

Agency responsibilities

Agencies are responsible for the following matters:

• ensuring that CLAS is integrated into the agency’s customer service policy, programs and strategies;
• promoting the availability of CLAS to customers;
• ensuring that appropriate language assistance is provided to customers;
• determining the languages, numbers and locations of recipients under the Community Language Allowance Scheme;
• determining the organisational needs and demands which warrant payment of each level of the allowance;
• providing or securing training for CLAS recipients;
• providing study assistance for employees who wish to upgrade their community language skills;
• reporting on CLAS implementation in the agency’s ethnic affairs reports in its annual reports;
• integrate monitoring and review of CLAS into agency planning and reporting cycles.

Reporting arrangements

The Commission has responsibilities to report to the Minister for Citizenship on the implementation of community relations policies. The Community Language Allowance Scheme is one of those policies. Agencies should report on their achievements with the scheme in;

• their annual reports;
• their reports on implementation of an ethnic affairs priorities statement
• information provided to the Commission on a self assessment under its Ethnic Affairs Priorities Statement standards framework.

The Office of the Director of Equal Opportunity in Public Employment considers the use of community language capability by an agency as an indicator of fair policies and practices. Indicators of staff receiving a community language allowance are relevant here. Agencies are expected to report on the number and percentage of staff receiving the Community Language Allowance.

Further Information

• For information about the CLAS determination contact the Public Sector Management Office, Premier’s Department or the Personnel Handbook.
• For more information about testing for CLAS contact the Community Relations Commission.
• For information about how CLAS operates in particular agencies contact the customer service unit/branch/division or human resource branch of the agency.
• For information about NAATI qualifications contact the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI).
• For information about our community refer to The People of NSW: statistics from the 2001 Census.