Whole Foods workers suspended over speaking Spanish - NBC News.com: Two employees at a Whole Foods Market store in Albuquerque say they were suspended last month after complaining about the company's policy that bars workers from speaking Spanish to each other while on the job.
Bryan Baldizan told The Associated Press he and a female employee were suspended for a day when they wrote a letter after meeting with a manager who told them that speaking Spanish is not allowed during work hours.
"I couldn't believe it," said Baldizan, who works in the store's food preparation department. "All we did was say we didn't believe the policy was fair. We only talk Spanish to each other about personal stuff, not work."
He said Whole Foods officials told them about company policy and issued the suspensions.
Ralph Arellanes, director of the New Mexico League of United Latin American Citizens, contends the Whole Foods Market policy violates the state's constitution, which protects Spanish and American Indian languages. Latino groups will meet soon about a possible boycott of businesses that have similar policies, he said.
