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Programme: accepted abstracts

Abstract ID: 379

Part of Session 153: Working in the City (Other abstracts in this session)

Language ideologies, meta-linguistic discourse and the positioning of cross-border workers in a multilingual workplace environment

Authors: Franziskus, Anne
Submitted by: Franziskus, Anne (University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg)

The present contribution proposes to investigate the ways in which cross-border workers reflect upon, challenge and deconstruct established views on language use in multilingual Luxembourg. Focusing on cross-border workers is particularly salient for capturing the dynamics and complex interplays between increased workforce mobility and language use that characterize Luxembourg’s changing workplace realities. Given that cross-border workers come from countries where there is one official state language (France & Germany) or where two languages fulfil this role but in clearly separated regions (Belgium), it can be assumed that they are generally less multilingual than Luxembourgers, who have been educated and socialised in a highly multilingual context. The multilingual workplace environment is thus likely to impact on the cross-border workers ability to use their own linguistic resources, and brings about the need for participants to negotiate their legitimacy in this sociolinguistic environment. In such situations of instability and change, language ideologies are likely to play a significant role in intergroup interactions.

Much research on language ideologies focuses on the analysis of meta-linguistic discourse elicited through interview data. However, such meta-linguistic discourse does also appear in naturally occurring interactions between colleagues at work. The analysis of this contribution will be based upon naturally occurring spoken data recorded at three different workplaces in Luxembourg: a supermarket, an IT-company and a distribution company, thus combining both blue collar and white collar workplace settings. This data provides insights into the ways in which participants draw upon and challenge established language ideologies in Luxembourg in order to negotiate their own positioning within this multilingual environment. Meta-linguistic discourse appears in the interactions of cross-border workers both as overt discussions with colleagues about the language situation in Luxembourg, as well as more implicit comments about language use at work. General trends in this meta-linguistic discourse include: contesting the boundaries between what counts as a language, challenging the use of certain languages at work, as well as commenting upon language skills of other colleagues or clients.  The contribution will show how cross-border workers employ these language ideologies to protect and promote their own place within a multilingual workplace environment.