According to the latest executive order, proficiency in English should be a non-negotiable safety requirement for professional drivers. Sikh Coalition says that the order raises significant concerns for the Sikh community.
The latest executive order signed by US President Donald Trump mandates that truck drivers in America should be proficient in English. The move has raised concerns among Sikh advocacy groups, calling to have a “discriminatory impact” on truckers from the community and creating unnecessary barriers to employment. The executive order titled ‘Enforcing Commonsense Rules of the Road for America’s Truck Drivers’ underscores that truck drivers are essential to the strength of the country’s economy, its security and the livelihoods of the American people.
The order issued on Monday says that proficiency in English should be a non-negotiable safety requirement for professional drivers, adding, “They should be able to read and understand traffic signs and communicate with traffic safety, border patrol, agricultural checkpoints, and cargo weight-limit station officers.”
“Drivers need to provide feedback to their employers and customers and receive related directions in English. This is common sense,” the order further stated.
“My administration will enforce the law to protect the safety of American truckers, drivers, passengers, and others, including by upholding the safety enforcement regulations that ensure that anyone behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle is properly qualified and proficient in our national language, English,” Trump said in the order.
Sikh Coalition, an advocacy group, said it is “deeply concerned” about Trump’s order that seeks to “ensure all commercial vehicle operators in the United States are proficient English speakers.”
According to the Sikh Coalition, the order raises significant concerns for the Sikh community, which has a substantial presence in the American trucking industry.
It cited estimates by The Economist, which had said in a report that approximately 150,000 Sikhs work in the trucking industry, 90 per cent of whom are drivers.
“Our community has played a vital role in meeting the high demand for drivers and alleviating the stress of driver shortages on American consumers and the economy; more than 30,000 Sikh drivers joined the industry between 2016 and 2018, contributing significantly to this critical sector before supply chain problems in 2020. Sikhs help drive—quite literally—the American economy,” the Sikh Coalition said.
(With inputs from AP)
