> But stenographers? That sounds like a job that is usually
> reserved for native English speakers, or has technology rendered that a
> non-qualification (seriously, perhaps it has).
For dictation I presume native speakers are still needed, but for many clerical tasks the more nearly illiterate the better. The only time in my life when *no one* misspelled my first name was during my time in the Air Force. The clerks there were often of limited literacy, and all were taught not to think but merely to transcribe what was in front of them. In contrast, most posters on these lists misspell my name. University professors are especially apt to misspell it.
Carrol