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Interpreters for Job Interviews and HR Meetings
An employer hiring for a job that does not require English, or meeting an employee about benefits, a complaint or discipline, needs both sides to understand exactly what was said. Here is what federal guidance says about language at work, what these meetings ask of an interpreter, and how to book one.
English only if the job needs it
EEOC guidance allows English fluency requirements only where the job requires them.
Not a coworker
A supervisor or colleague interpreting a disciplinary meeting is a witness, not an interpreter.
$80 for an interview by video
Virtual $80 an hour, one-hour minimum; in person $110 with a two-hour minimum.
Who arranges the interpreter, and what the EEOC says about language
The employer arranges it: the meeting is the employer's, and a candidate or employee should not be asked to bring or pay for their own. We did not find a federal rule that requires a private employer to provide an interpreter for an interview, and we do not claim one. What federal guidance does address is how language may and may not be used in employment decisions.
The EEOC's enforcement guidance on national origin discrimination treats linguistic characteristics as part of national origin. An English fluency requirement is permissible only if the job requires it for effective performance, and an employer may rely on accent only where it materially interferes with the job. For a role that does not require English, interviewing the candidate through an interpreter lets you assess what the job does require.
The same guidance, in its promising practices, advises employers where other languages are spoken to make sure policies reach everyone — translating them and offering training in employees' languages — and to consider providing interpreters or other language assistance so that employees can report harassment confidentially. That is advice, not a mandate, but it describes exactly the meetings employers book us for.
What an interview asks of an interpreter
An interview is consecutive and in the first person: the interviewer asks, the interpreter renders the question, the candidate answers, the interpreter renders the answer as "I", not "he says". The interpreter renders what the candidate said, at the level it was said; they do not tidy up a weak answer or add the experience the candidate forgot to mention. The interviewer judges the answer, not the interpreting.
If the job needs some English — reading labels, talking to customers — decide beforehand which part of the interview tests it, and do that part in English without the interpreter. Mixing the two, with the interpreter stepping in whenever the candidate hesitates, tests neither. Ask every candidate for the same role the same questions; the EEOC's hiring practices recommend similar questions for all applicants, limited to the position.
Onboarding, benefits and policy meetings
Onboarding is dense in a way interviews are not: pay periods, overtime, benefits enrollment, leave, the handbook, safety rules, the complaint process. Much of it is read from documents, which the interpreter renders aloud by sight translation, and that goes better if they receive the documents a day ahead. Anything the employee will need to consult later — the handbook, the harassment policy — belongs in a written translation as well, which is a separate service; a meeting is remembered for a week, a document stays.
Investigations and disciplinary meetings
- Do not use a coworker, supervisor or the employee's relative. Each has a stake, may be a witness, and will hear things the employee may not want them to hear. An outside interpreter has no role in the matter.
- Interpret every interview in the investigation — complainant, respondent and witnesses — not only the one with the employee who speaks the least English. Inconsistent interpreting between interviews looks like inconsistent statements.
- Have the interpreter render the written warning or summary aloud before the employee signs, and note on the document that it was interpreted, into which language, and when.
- Keep the interpreter neutral. They do not explain the policy, reassure the employee or give advice; if the employee asks the interpreter a question, it is rendered to the HR representative to answer.
- Allow time. A 30-minute meeting in one language takes close to an hour through an interpreter.
Booking interviews and HR meetings
A single interview by video or phone is $80 for the hour, with no travel. A morning of four in-person interviews in one language, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., is 4 × $110 = $440, plus travel at $0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location, confirmed before you book. A one-hour disciplinary meeting in person still carries the two-hour minimum, $220, so in-person meetings with the same employee or the same language are best scheduled together.
Send with the request the job description or the subject of the meeting, the documents that will be discussed or read aloud, the names of the people attending, and whether the meeting is part of an investigation. Leave out what the interpreter does not need to know about the matter.
By video, by phone or in person
Virtual interpreting runs on Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams, or over the telephone. It is quicker to arrange, costs less and carries no travel charge, and it suits appointments, calls and most meetings.
In person is what venues with their own rules tend to expect, and the right choice when documents are being signed or several people are speaking at once. Tell us the platform, or the city and the venue, when you send the request.
Languages
The standard-availability languages are: Spanish, Portuguese, French, Mandarin, Cantonese, Arabic, Russian, Korean, Vietnamese, Haitian Creole, Polish, Italian, German, Japanese, Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Turkish, Ukrainian, Tagalog, Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Armenian, Greek, Hebrew, Romanian, Serbian, Bosnian, Somali and Nepali. Every other language we offer carries the 25–30% limited-availability rate. If a language is not on that list it is not because we cannot do it — it is because the pool of qualified interpreters in the United States is small enough that we will not promise a date without checking.
Each language has its own page on what to watch for — dialects, names, dates, who the speakers usually are: see interpreters by language.
What it costs
Rates are per interpreter, per hour, and billed from the scheduled start time rather than from when everyone actually arrives.
- Virtual — $80 per hour, one-hour minimum. Zoom, Google Meet, Teams or telephone.
- In person — $110 per hour, two-hour minimum.
- Limited-availability languages — add 25–30%. Which languages those are is listed below rather than left vague.
- Travel for in-person work — $0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location.
How the travel charge works out
Travel is charged at $0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location, which means you can work it out rather than wait for a quote: a 20-mile round trip is $14, a 60-mile round trip is $42, a 150-mile round trip is $105. There is no separate call-out fee on top.
We will not pretend to know in advance where the interpreter will be coming from — that depends on the language, the date and the venue. What we do is confirm the interpreter and the exact travel figure before you book, so it is never a surprise on the invoice. Virtual assignments carry no travel charge at all, which is one reason most of what we do is virtual.
How booking an interpreter works
- You send the request with the form below: the language, the setting, the format, the date and how long it should last.
- We confirm before you commit: the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one. We reply the same business day, and no payment is taken at this stage.
- You confirm, and the interpreter is booked for your date.
What to have ready
The more of this comes in the first message, the fewer exchanges before you have a price:
- The language, the date, the start time and how long it should run.
- Virtual or in person: the platform, or the city and the venue.
- The setting and the subject matter.
- How many people need interpreting for.
- Any credential the venue requires of the interpreter.
Request an interpreter
Tell us the date, the language and the setting and we will come back with the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one — before you commit to anything.
Thank you — we have your request
We will reply the same business day with the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one, before you commit to anything.
Sources
What this page says about the rules was checked against these official sources on October 21, 2026. Rules change; the source is always the authority.
Frequently asked questions
Can we interview a candidate through an interpreter?
Yes. For a job that does not require English, it is how you assess what the job does require. The EEOC's guidance says an English fluency requirement is permissible only if needed for effective performance of the position (EEOC guidance, section V.B).
Is it legal to require English for a job?
Only where the job requires it for effective performance, according to the EEOC's national origin guidance, and the level should be assessed job by job. Blanket rules requiring employees to speak English at all times are presumed unlawful under the same guidance.
Can a bilingual supervisor interpret a disciplinary meeting?
It is a poor idea. The supervisor has a role in the matter, may be a witness, and the employee may not speak freely in front of them. An outside interpreter has no stake in the outcome.
Should employees be able to report harassment in their own language?
The EEOC advises employers to consider translated policies, training in employees' languages, and interpreters or other language assistance so employees can report harassment confidentially (Promising practices).
Can you translate our employee handbook as well?
Yes, as a separate written service quoted per page — see business document translation.
Is the price per person or per interpreter?
Per interpreter, per hour, billed from the scheduled start time. One interpreter covers a meeting; a full-day hearing may need two working in relay.
How is travel charged?
$0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location — a 20-mile round trip is $14. We confirm the exact figure before you book, and virtual assignments carry none.
Need an interpreter?
Tell us the date, the language and the setting and we will confirm the interpreter and the exact price.