Truckers Rush to Improve English Skills Amid New Policy

Truck drivers across the United States are rushing to improve their English language skills following an executive order issued by President Donald Trump. The order states that truckers who do not read and speak English proficiently will be considered unfit for service. This new policy has sparked a wave of concern and action among truck drivers, many of whom rely on English as a second language for their daily operations.

At a trucking school in New Jersey, students are diligently practicing their English skills while learning to maneuver 18-wheelers and perform safety checks. Instructors are using printed scripts of English phrases to help students like Manuel Castillo, a native Spanish speaker, practice what they would say during a roadside inspection. The urgency to brush up on English has intensified after the Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that drivers who cannot understand English will not be allowed to drive commercial vehicles in the country.

The updated U.S. Department of Transportation procedures call for enhanced inspections to determine if commercial motor vehicle operators can reply to questions and directions in English, as well as understand highway traffic signs and electronic message boards. Truckers who learned English as a second language are particularly concerned about the potential impact on their jobs. Some have taken classes, recited scripts, and watched instructional videos to improve their English fluency.

Jerry Maldonado, chairman of the board of the Laredo Motor Carriers Association, expressed the nervousness felt by many truckers. "If it’s not the language that you prefer to use daily, you may get a little nervous and you may feel, ‘What if I say the wrong thing?’” he said. The guidance applies to truck and bus drivers engaged in interstate commerce and aims to improve road safety following incidents where truck drivers’ inability to read signs or speak English may have contributed to traffic deaths.

Requiring truck drivers to speak and read English is not a new policy, but the penalty for not meeting the proficiency standard is becoming more severe. To get a commercial driver’s license, applicants must pass a written test and be able to name the parts of a bus or truck in English. The revised policy reverses guidance issued nine years ago, near the end of then-President Barack Obama’s final term. In 2016, the agency said drivers whose English skills were found lacking could receive a citation but not be prohibited from working. Before that, the penalty was getting placed on “out-of-service status.”

In Laredo, a border city where many residents speak a mix of English and Spanish, Maldonado’s association is offering free English classes on weekends to help truckers feel more confident in their ability to communicate. At Driving Academy in Linden, New Jersey, multilingual instructors teach students how to inspect vehicle parts in their first language and then provide explanations in English. The school created scripts so students could practice what to say if they’re stopped.

Instructor Paul Cuartas helps students prepare but worries that inspectors will now expect truckers and bus drivers to have perfect English. “I’m concerned because now for all the Spanish people it’s more difficult,” he said. Castillo, who moved to the U.S. from Ecuador in 1993, said he has no problem understanding English but has been watching videos to study industry terms. “Some words I don’t understand, but I try to learn more English,” he said.

Roadside inspections can be initiated over issues such as a faulty brake light or on a routine basis, and often take place at weigh stations. The guidance directs inspectors who suspect a driver doesn’t understand what they’re saying to administer an English proficiency test, which includes both an interview and a highway traffic sign recognition component. In the past, some drivers used translation apps to communicate with federal inspectors. The updated policy bars the use of interpreters, smartphones, cue cards or other aids during interviews.

Several truck drivers taking a break at Flying J Travel Center in New Jersey said they support Trump’s order, adding that drivers who heavily rely on translation programs probably wouldn’t be able to read important signs. “We try to ask them questions about the business just to strike a conversation, … and they’re not able to communicate with us at all,” Kassem Elkhatib, one of the drivers at Flying J, said.

It’s unclear how safety inspectors will decide whether a driver knows enough English because that portion of the instructions was redacted from the guidance distributed by Transportation Department. The department advised motor carriers that drivers should be able to answer questions about shipping documents, the origin and destination of trips, and how long they’ve been on duty. A trucker placed out of service and the company they work for are responsible for ensuring a language violation is corrected before the driver hits the highway again.

Truck drivers who practice the Sikh religion already face discrimination in hiring and at loading docks. Now they are worried about inspectors making subjective, non-standardized determinations about which of them are proficient in English. “A truck driver who does speak English sufficiently to comply with federal standards but maybe they speak with an accent, or maybe they use a different vocabulary that the inspector isn’t used to hearing: Is that person then going to be subject to an English language violation?” asked Mannirmal Kaur, federal policy manager for Sikh Coalition, an advocacy group. “And under the new policy, are they then going to be designated out-of-service, which could result in unemployment?”