1. On-Demand In-Person and or Video Remote Interpreting VRI a) The Contractor will provide On-demand In-Person and or Video Remote Interpreting services, through a call center infrastructure, for all covered languages, including but not limited to the 171 languages and dialects listed in Appendix A. b) The Contractor will use a linguist or other professional who can identify the language or dialect of any caller. Such person will inform the caller of the status of the call (i.e., to tell the caller to hold on for an interpreter after the language is identified) at significant intervals. c) The Contractor will have the ability to answer multiple simultaneous calls/VRI in multiple languages. d) Services will be performed by professional and experienced interpreters who possess demonstrated proficiency levels. All interpretation will be accurate, precise, clear, culturally, and linguistically sensitive for the target individual taking into account the varied levels of education and technical understanding of the target individual. e) Interpreters will be qualified to handle all ranges of subject matter and to explain concepts such as: press credential eligibility requirements, film permit regulations, nightlife industry resources, and qualifications for MOME’s programs and initiatives. Interpreters will translate location-based information – for example, New York City street names and addresses, neighborhood names and identifiers, and other locations (schools, parks, clinics) – relevant to the Agency’s services. f) The Contractor will provide three-way call handling, for conversations where it is necessary to create a conference call with a third party to assist in conveying the original caller’s needs. g) The Contractor will provide assistance with outbound calls/VRI. h) The Contractor will provide operators with the option to speak to a live coordinator or to use touch-tone selection of languages. i) The Contractor will ensure that its interpreters have the customer service skills necessary to maintain the highest standards of the foreign language interpretation industry. n) If requested, the Contractor will provide voiceover file for hold (i.e., phone messages to be played while callers are on hold waiting to be transferred) for the 10 designated citywide languages. o) TLC anticipates in-person interpretation for language pairs involving English and any of the top six (6) limited-English proficiency (LEP) languages of its industry. In addition, considering the breadth of cultural diversity in the taxi and for-hire industry, TLC may request interpretation services for other relevant LEP languages. Therefore, the following eleven (11) languages will be defined as Tier 1 Languages in the resultant task order: 1. Spanish 2. Arabic 3. Bengali 4. Chinese 5. French 6. Haitian Creole 7. Korean 8. Polish 9. Russian 10. Spanish 11. Punjabi p) Work Scheduling and Preparation i. Unless otherwise notified by the Agency, the Contractor will provide telephonic interpretation services to the Agency twenty-four (24) hours per day, seven (7) days per week, for each day of the year. ii. The Contractor will answer within thirty (30) seconds of the Agency’s operator transfer of a call for those calls/VRI in the languages of Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese or Russian; and answer within forty-five (45) seconds of the Agency’s operator transfer of a call for those languages other than Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese and Russian. If the average connect time to an interpreter during any month is more than as set forth above, liquated damages will be assessed. iii. The Contractor will answer at least 95% of calls/VRI within three (3) rings.
