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Language barriers needn't make interviews a hiring barrier

It's up to recruiters and hiring managers to ensure the language barrier doesn't become an employment barrier for ESL candidates, according to an expert who says that unless spoken language skills are a key component of a role, an interview might not even be necessary.

"If you work in a publishing company and you are hiring someone to be a book editor for literary manuscripts, then go for your life with complicated English language; that's a requirement of the job," says Diversity Council Australia CEO Lisa Annese.

If it doesn't matter, however, recruiters should speak as plainly as possible when interviewing candidates with limited English skills.

"It's really important for recruiting managers to offer potential candidates different options for interviews," Annese adds, and to pay attention to how they ask...