The Ministry of Education and Science sent a draft amendment to the Language Act and the Public Transport Act to the partners for their opinion, the purpose of which is to strengthen the position of the Estonian language as the state language - for example, the requirement to know the Estonian language also extends to employees on digital platforms.
The proposed changes concern the language requirements of employees, audio advertising, foreign-language brands and web addresses of state and local government institutions, as well as Estonian-language management of public institutions.
Minister of Education and Science Tõnis Lukas Tõnis Lukas is an Estonian politician. stated that the language law must be brought into line with changes in society. "Estonian must be the main language of information and communication in Estonia, and in every field," said Minister Lukas. "The supervision of the Language Board has drawn attention to problems that were not relevant more than ten years ago when the Language Act was being adjusted. For example, many employees in the service area have little or no knowledge of the Estonian language and advertisements in several languages in large shopping centers. With the amendment to the law, on the one hand, we are protecting the interests of Estonian people as consumers, on the other hand, it is crucial to strengthen the position of the Estonian language as the state language and make the Estonian language more visible and dominant in the public space, as stipulated in the Estonian language development plan."
Couriers and taxi drivers must speak Estonian
In the draft, people working through digital platforms are added to the list of employees who may be required to know the Estonian language in the public interest. This means that in order to continue their current activities, they must improve their Estonian language skills. Complaints received by the Language Board indicate that the mediating digital platform does not always help to find a solution to the misunderstanding between the customer of the service and the courier or taxi driver who does not speak Estonian, whether it is about finding the right destination, specifying the address or time, or any other circumstance related to the service.
It is planned to stipulate in the Public Transport Act that the taxi driver must prove his knowledge of the Estonian language before issuing a driver's card and submit a corresponding document. Anyone who has been issued a service card before the amendment came into force must submit to the issuer a document certifying the knowledge of the Estonian language at least at the B1 level. The amendment reinstates the requirement that was valid before March 2016 that a taxi driver must know Estonian at least at the B1 level. Taxi drivers are required to know the national language in many countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Great Britain, Denmark, Finland, the Czech Republic, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway), and in several countries, in addition to the national language, they also require the knowledge of one foreign language at least at the basic level.
Advertisments at least 80% Estonian, e-mails only Estonian
The share of audio advertising in a foreign language may not exceed 20 percent of the total volume of audio advertising, i.e. at least 80 percent of the audio advertising must be in Estonian. Currently, the share of audio advertising in Estonian is only one third.
According to the bill, the domain names of state institutions and local government institutions must be in Estonian, and only Estonian words and abbreviations can be used in the e-mail addresses of employees. Currently, there is no requirement in the Language Act for the domain name and related e-mail addresses to be in Estonian, and the web and e-mail addresses of several state institutions contain information in foreign languages (for example, the rescue agency has rescue.ee, the environmental ministry has envir.ee).
The draft specifies the principles of how to include information in Estonian about the place of business, the goods or services offered when using a foreign-language trademark. The text in Estonian must be just as visible and located in the same field of view as the text in a foreign language. This does not require re-branding, but primarily finding the right place, size and layout. There are currently no requirements for the location or viewability of the Estonian text.
Foreign students may use foreign languages
The draft also specifies the list of institutions where administration in Estonian is mandatory. According to the current law, the management of state institutions and local government institutions is in the Estonian language, and the requirement also extends to companies with a majority stake in the state, foundations established by the state, and non-profit organizations with state participation. Public legal entities, such as the Estonian National Broadcasting Company, the National Opera, the National Library and all public universities, are added to the list. In this way, the possibility that an Estonian student would have to communicate with a university operating in Estonia in a foreign language is excluded, and teaching staff are guaranteed the right to conduct business in Estonian and receive professional information in Estonian. In external communication and communication with foreign students and lecturers, the language suitable for both parties may continue to be used.