Remote Senior Sign Language Specialist

2 days ago

MontSaintHilaire, Quebec, Canada Sorenson Communications Full-time

Come be a part of our mission and make a meaningful and positive impact with the industry leading provider of language services for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing


 


* This is a Canada Remote Only Position *


 


Pay Range: Actual pay may vary up or down depending on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location. In addition, this position may be eligible for incentive compensation.


 


Essential Duties and Responsibilities



  • Maintain and expand Sorenson's ASL sign dictionary — author new entries, review and update existing entries, document regional and register variants, and resolve disputed entries with the Lead.
  • Annotate ASL video using advanced gloss conventions, including classifier predicates (locative, instrument, semantic, body-part, and element classifiers), non-manual markers, role shift, and prosody.
  • Partner with AI/ML engineering teams to clarify linguistic requirements for training data, review model outputs for linguistic accuracy, and provide feedback on edge cases.
  • Review text-to-sign avatar output for ASL grammatical accuracy, naturalness, and cultural appropriateness; document issues using standardized rubrics.
  • Lead weekly linguistic calibration sessions; own gloss and classifier convention documentation and decision logs.
  • Mentor Sign Language Specialists during cross-functional rotations.
  • Maintain accurate records of annotation work, decisions, and edge cases in team tooling and documentation systems.

 


Supervisory Responsibility


This position has no supervisory responsibilities.


 


Travel Requirements


Travel Requirements:  Less than 25%


 


Education


Minimum of 4 Year / Bachelors Degree In ASL Linguistics, Deaf Studies, ASL Studies, Interpreting, Deaf Education, or related fields.


Preferred Graduate Degree In ASL Linguistics, Linguistics, Deaf Studies, Interpreting, Deaf Education, or a related field.


 


Experience


3 Years of substantive professional ASL work (annotation, linguistics, interpreting, Deaf education, or comparable).


 


Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities



  • Required
  • Bilingual in ASL in English, with the ability to produce and quality-assure professional English transcriptions from ASL source content.
  • Deep working knowledge of ASL linguistics — gloss conventions, non-manual markers, classifier predicates, role shift, and ASL grammar.
  • Active and informed participant in the Deaf community, with awareness of regional and generational ASL variation.
  • Experience producing or annotating ASL content for instructional, research, interpreting, or media purposes.
  • Strong written English for documentation, task specifications, and cross-team collaboration.
  • Comfortable working with computer-based annotation tools and learning new software.
  • Attention to detail, consistency, and a willingness to follow and improve standardized conventions.
  • Ability to work both independently and collaboratively with peer Specialists, the Lead, and engineering teams.
  • Proficiency with standard productivity and collaboration tools (Microsoft Office, Confluence, JIRA, or equivalent).
  • Positive attitude, team player, strong interpersonal communication skills, and able to work across research, engineering, and business departments.
  • Preferred
  • American Sign Language as a primary or native language.
  • Prior experience with annotation tools such as ELAN, CVAT, or comparable platforms.
  • Experience working with AI/ML teams, technology companies, or research groups that produce sign language data.
  • Experience reviewing or evaluating signed avatars, animations, or generated ASL content.
  • Experience writing or reviewing annotation guidelines, style guides, or convention documentation.
  • Familiarity with sign language corpora, lexicography, or dictionary projects.
  • Experience mentoring or training other annotators or linguists.
  • Familiarity with PSE, SEE, and other North American signing varieties.

 


Working Conditions and Physical Requirements



  • Able to travel up to 5% of the time.
  • Able to sit/stand for long periods of time in an office or remote work environment.
  • Dexterity of hands and fingers to operate a computer keyboard, mouse,