HOBBS, N.M. (AP) - A southeastern New Mexico county has shunned a proposal to encourage employees to learn Spanish.
The Hobbs News-Sun reports Lea County Commissioners turned thumbs-down on the idea that would have given employees paid incentives to become bilingual in a county where nearly 60 percent of residents are Latino.
Under a proposal presented by county human resources director Craig Bova last week, the bilingual policy would offer $1,500 to full-time employees who could successfully pass an annual English-Spanish language proficiency test.
But Commissioner Dean Jackson says every citizen should speak English because it’s “the language of the land.”
Commission chairwoman Rebecca Long says the money used for the incentives should be used instead to hire “more environmental people” and more sheriff’s deputies.
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Information from: Hobbs News-Sun, http://www.hobbsnews.com
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