Electoral Commission’s monolingual job ad breached Welsh Language Standards

The Electoral Commission breached Welsh Language Standards with monolingual job advert, it has revealed.

The agency, which regulates elections in the UK, made the revelation in its Welsh Language Standards Annual Monitoring Report.

It received a complaint from a member of the public that alleged that a non-bilingual job advert breached Welsh Language Standards.

After looking into the complaint, the Electoral Commission concluded that some standards were breached and not others. But it said that it withdrew the recruitment independent of the complaint.

The report said: “We received one direct complaint from a member of the public in relation to our compliance with the Welsh Language Standards between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021. The complaint related to a non-bilingual job advert. The complaint alleged that the Commission was in breach of standards.

“The complaint was acknowledged within the 20 working days we are required to respond to complaints. We concluded that Standards 132 and 132A were not breached, however standards 48, 133 and 133A were breached. Independent of the complaint, we withdrew the recruitment, and therefore no one was disadvantaged.”

The report also revealed that the Electoral Commission advertised externally and bilingually for the posts of Translator, Communications Officer, and for an Adviser on Wales.

‘Essential’ 

The report said: “Welsh language skills were identified as essential to the role in the job description of the Translator and the Communications Officer. In the Adviser’s job description it was noted that Welsh language skills were desirable.

“The two external, temporary posts employed to work on the helpline leading up to the Welsh Senedd and Police and Crime Commissioner elections were advertised with Welsh language skills essential, and two fluent Welsh speakers were appointed to both roles.”