12/9/16

Jessica L. Hatchette, CFCM

Senior Subcontracts Manager
SOS International LLC
1881 Campus Commons Drive, Suite 500
Reston, VA 20191
Dear Ms. Jessica L. Hatchette,
Thank you for your recent invitation to submit a proposal as subcontractors
for the continued
Provision of interpretation services to DOJ EOIR .
After having reviewed your request for proposals very carefully, I feel that
several aspects of
The document represent unsustainable and unfair requirements.
I specifically disagree with the stipulation that remuneration for my
interpreting services be
capped at an hourly rate of $ 35.00 per hour. This figure fails to account for
the years of experience, hard work and continuous training which I have
invested into this very unique
and challenging interpretation setting. My ability to work well under
pressure and react in a
timely fashion to solve complex linguistic situations, and accurately
interpret facts and concepts in a transparent manner from source language
to target language is directly related
to my knowledge of esoteric legal terminology which is pervasive to the
immigration courtroom which I have developed thru years of service in
immigration courts.
Spanish may be the most commonly interpreted language in American
courtrooms but I assure you that in this context it requires high levels of
skill, talent coupled with experience
which cannot be replaced by a bilingual person with little to no experience
and training.
Additionally, I disagree with the Payment deduction clause within
attachment B which
stipulates that:

 if the contractor cannot gain access to a hearing location because he/she

is late due to
unforseen circumstances, or does not have proper credentials to provide
the service, an amount of $ 250.00 per occurrence for non-detained cases
and $750.00 dollars for detaind cases, will be deducted from contractors
pay.

If the contractor provides less than 24 hours notice to SOSI, that contractor
will not be able to attend an assigned hearing and SOSI is unable to find
another contractor to attend the applicable hearing or the contractor does
not show up for the hearing assignment after accepting the case assignment
an amount of $250.00 per occurrence for non-detained cases and $750.00
dollars per occurrence for detained cases, will be deducted from contractors
pay.
I firmly believe that this aspect of the agreement should be modified to
reflect and exception to the policy regarding financial penalization to the
interpreter, if the circumstances lead to the unexpected inability to perform
the interpretation services are due to circumstances such as emergency
situations or illnesses. When an interpreter is forced to vacate an assignment
for these reasons, documentation demonstrating reasons should be sufficient
to formally excuse the interpreters absence.

Therefore it is my hope that SOSI will give full consideration to these

concerns, and will modify
The agreement as in the manner requested above to address the issues
pertaining to hourly compensation rate and unexpected inability to complete
assignments. Once these modifications have been implemented, I will be
amenable to signing an amended agreement.

Sincerely,

Lisandra Garcia
Spanish Interpreter