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Anna Knechtel
Mrs. King
English 9
2 March 2015

Employees and Bad Grammar

Last month, January 2015, the unemployment rate in the United States was 5.7%. But is
this rate due to lack of jobs or lack of employees seeking jobs? The major answer is neither, but;
an even bigger problem, illiterate employees. Many companies are looking for employees but
come up short handed when the job applications come in, many applicants are turned down for
poor grammar. Grammar is still one of the most sought out skills for employers. Grammar should
be taught in schools because good grammar correlates to good communication and writing skills
that employers look for since writing is becoming more common in the workplace.

Many employers believe that good grammar and good oral communication go hand in
hand. But many applicants don't have the grammar skills that many companies are seeking. This
leads to most companies turning down fair candidates for poor writing skills. Kelly Holland
stated in, Why Johnny cant write, and why employers are mad, that 80% of employers said
colleges should focus more on written and oral communication(Holland 7). This means that

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undereducated job seekers will be turned down due to faults in their oral speaking abilities. But
this is not the only problem faced by job seekers.
Many employers will not hire illiterate employees. This is because they dont want to
waste pay on someone who is poorly suited for the job and cost the employers millions on
simple grammatical errors. Rushkoff stated in, Its Just Grammar, Its Clear Thinking, a New
York Times piece, Only the writer skilled in grammar is entrusted with representing a company
in a letter or an e-mail (Rushkoff 3). This is stating that only skilled employees can write will be
given jobs in many fields. This is also a safety measure for the employer themselves. In 2006 a
utility company in Canada had to lease power poles costing $2.13 million because one employee
misplaced a comma (Fogarty 14). How many of employers want to pay $2.13 million due to one
employees lack of grammar skills? The answer, none. In I wont Hire People Who Use Poor
Grammar.Heres Why, author Kyle Wiens said even in this hyper-competitive market, I will
pass on a great programmer who cannot write (Wiens 9). This proves that even the most
qualified job seekers will be turned down for poor grammar.

Many employees are learning that writing is important not just for landing the job but for
keeping it too. Many employers have their employees write e-mails to clients or to other
companies. If these employees dont know proper grammar then the company looks
unprofessional. This is why many companies are letting only skilled writers send out emails or
letters in the companys name (Rushkoff 3). But many companies cant have the limited few
write all the emails and letters for that corporations. So many employers have to risk the
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credibility of their business to have emails replied to in a timely fashion. This then puts both
skilled and unskilled workers jobs on the line. Poorly worded letters or emails could then, as
stated before, lead to costly mistakes and that can lead to companies having to pay millions.
Although many schools still teach a limited amount of grammar, many parents and school
districts officials are calling for the removal of more and more grammar units from the english
course. Those who agree with this stance believe because many papers are already written online
and the student, or writer, can just use a spell check software system. That it will correct our
mistakes and fix them for us. Although this is partly true, the main problem in grammar is not
spelling or punctuation but the difference between to, two, and too. Many spell check
systems cannot alert writers that they have used the wrong word. Most spell check systems also
cannot proofread papers for the writer only check spelling, hence the name spell check..

Writing is a very important skill that is very sought out in the work field. This is because
to employers a good writer means a good communicator, also employers don't want illiterate
employees, and finally writing has become more and more of a common theme in almost every
job field. But many employee think that spell check will save them. But it cant help people who
cant write in a good solid structure. Many people think that good grammar will not apply to
them or that a missed placed comma is no big deal.Are they one of just 24% of 8th-12th grade
students are proficient in writing (Holland 8).

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Works Cited
Fogarty, Mignon. Does Grammar Really Matter?quickanddirtytips.com, 2009. Quick and Dirty
Tips. Web. February 15, 2015.
Holland, Kelley.Why Johnny cant write, and why employers are mad. cnbc.com. 2013. CNBC.

Web. February 15, 2015.

Rushkoff, Douglas. Its Not Just Grammar; Its Clear Thinking. nytimes.com.2013. New York
Times. Web. February 15, 2015.
Wiens, Kyle. I wont hire people who use poor grammar. Heres why. hbr.org. 2012. Harvard
Business Review.Web.February 15, 2015 .