INTERPRETER

Organizational Context

This position is located within the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations. Founded in 1948, ECLAC contributes to the region's economic and social development through policy design, advisory services, and training. Interpreters report to the Supervisor of the Conference Services Unit and are placed on the ECLAC Roster as French/Spanish interpreters for temporary appointments.

Job Purpose

The primary purpose of the Interpreter role at the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) is to ensure effective multilingual communication, specifically by providing high-quality interpretation from Spanish into French during official meetings. This function is critical to ECLAC's overarching mandate of contributing to the region's economic and social development. Interpreters directly support the organization's mission, which encompasses the design, monitoring, and evaluation of public policies, the provision of advisory services, expertise, and training to Governments, and the facilitation of regional and international cooperation. By bridging linguistic divides, interpreters enable seamless dialogue among diverse stakeholders, ensuring that complex discussions on critical development issues are fully understood and accurately conveyed. This role is instrumental in fostering informed decision-making, promoting collaborative action, and enhancing ECLAC's capacity to deliver on its strategic objectives. Successful candidates will be placed on a roster for temporary appointments, contributing to the overall operational efficiency of conference services and occasionally taking on leadership responsibilities for interpreter teams in sensitive meeting environments.

Responsibilities

The Interpreter's responsibilities primarily involve providing high-quality interpretation services. This includes the accurate and fluent simultaneous interpretation of speeches delivered in Spanish into French. Additionally, the role requires adaptability to various meeting contexts, including occasional assignments to sensitive or high-profile meetings where discretion and precision are paramount. Furthermore, interpreters may be entrusted with leadership duties, functioning as a team leader for all interpreters assigned to a specific meeting, which involves coordinating efforts and ensuring consistent quality across the team. These duties are performed within the framework of temporary appointments, with specific assignments depending on the Service/Section and duty station.

Work Experience

Required experience includes booth interpretation and at least two years in a language position or language-related job. A minimum of 50 proven days of work in conference interpretation into French is desirable, specifically if an advanced degree in interpretation or a post-graduate diploma in Conference Interpretation is not held.

Skills

Professionalism: Knowledge of a broad range of UN subjects, ability to work under stress, deliver high-quality interpretation, conscientiousness, efficiency, persistence, calmness, and gender perspective integration. Communication: Clear and effective speaking/writing, active listening, appropriate responses, clarification, two-way communication, audience-tailored language, and information sharing. Teamwork: Collaboration with colleagues, valuing input, willingness to learn, prioritizing team goals, supporting group decisions, sharing credit, and accepting joint responsibility.

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