The Linguist

@CIOL_Linguists SUMMER 2023 The Linguist 25 OPINION & COMMENT Is public service interpreting the 'poor relative' of the interpreting profession, and how can we change that? PHILIPPE MURIEL I must confess, I am a fan of interpreters' chat groups on social media. Interpreting is a lonely job and it is rare for us to meet up with colleagues for a chat. Few of us have a mentor to whom we can turn for guidance or advice. Online chat groups are a good place to 'talk shop', rant, share tips or seek advice. There is one question that surfaces quite regularly in those groups: how much should we charge for our interpreting? It's a reasonable question – especially when you're starting out in the business – and not an easy one to answer. It depends on so many factors: which type of interpreting is required, the 'rarity' of your language, the area of work, etc. Recently a colleague shared a very helpful article entitled 'Interpreting Salary and Rates: What to charge as an interpreter?' 1 It covered quite a few topics, including how rates are calculated, what rates interpreters charge per hour, and the different types of interpreting involved: conference, consecutive and public service (PSI). The author provided a handy comparison table detailing hourly, half-day and full-day rates, plus travel and expenses, for all three categories of interpreting. It came as no surprise to me that PSI was way down the list when it came to remuneration: the day rate was 45% lower than for conference interpreting; the hourly rate was 70% lower. Reading that article reminded me of the time I attended a conference where some 'leading lights' interpreters from the European Parliament and United Nations were speaking to language students. They (rightly) extolled the virtues of conference interpreting, encouraging the students to embrace the profession and 'make a difference'. PSI was never mentioned as a career option! It seems to me that public service interpreting is very much the 'poor relative' of our industry, whereas conference and consecutive (business) interpreting come across as all glamour (meeting 'important' people) and foreign travel. Now, I know that's not true: conference interpreting is highly skilled, extremely tiring and often not very glamorous at all, and my purpose here is not to criticise anyone. Conference and business interpreters do a vital job in enabling decision makers all over the world to do business, negotiate, establish policies, draw up legislation and much more. But I believe PSI is every bit as important yet less valued by some. PSIs will assist a non-English-speaking person who has been arrested and detained in a police cell, or is the victim of a crime, to communicate with the officers. They will interpret for a hospital patient who is undergoing a major operation or in the maternity ward giving birth. They will be in the court's consultation room where anxious parents are briefed by a barrister in a dispute with social services, or in the dock conveying the court proceedings to a defendant – often for hours on end. During the first lockdown, our PSI colleagues, in full PPE, were on the front line with medical personnel, enabling communication and often staying until the patient's last moments. We are there in times of crisis to enable communication in counselling sessions with deeply traumatised torture survivors, helping victims of domestic violence who are looking for safety, with mothers whose baby has just died, with homeless asylum seekers who no longer have recourse to public funding, In defence of PSI © PEXELS

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