This is slightly off topic because it's not exactly what an "employer" thinks. I had a spirited "debate" about this issue with a colleague once. To me it doesn't even matter if English is one of your country's "official" languages. To me the language you are speaking at home with Mom, Dad, whomever, is your native language. By my definition close to half the population of China do not count as "native speakers" of Mandarin. I often get annoyed when I hear Chinese say there are more native speakers of Mandarin than any other language in the world because, to me, that number should include only those Chinese actually speaking Mandarin from the moment they begin speaking and not the entire population of China. I can walk the streets of the city of several million where I now live in China and my ears will perk up when I actually hear Mandarin because it's so rare that I do. Many Africans and Indians will swear they are native speakers and lots of Filipinos as well because English is listed as one of their country's "official" languages. Call me a snob but I find such claims annoying and deceptive.