Educating Your Minority Workforce is Good For Business 

Suzanna De Baca -- Expert Business Source, 9/1/2007 5:35:00 PM

Looking for a cost-effective way to support your Latino employees and prepare your future workforce?  Point them to the The Sallie Mae Funds’ Get on the Bus Tour, a 65-city initiative that will provide free bi-lingual information on educational planning for this exploding portion of the construction industry and of our national population.

“The rate of U.S. Hispanic employment has grown exponentially in recent years, particularly in the building and construction sector,” says a July 11, 2007 piece on HISPANIC PR WIRE, entitled “Increasing Number of Hispanic Workers Enter Construction Industry.” The article cites research from the Pew Hispanic Center, that indicated in 2006 two thirds of all new construction jobs were filled by workers of Hispanic descent, many of whom are Spanish-dominant or bilingual. While in the past, the Hispanic labor force often provided temporary or seasonal labor to construction industries, new census data suggests that Latinos are becoming permanent members of communities far from the traditional immigrant gateways such as Los Angeles, Chicago, or New York. 

While the coastal areas are still entry points for many minority groups, Latinos are fanning out and settling in rural and suburban areas. Georgia, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, Florida, Tennessee and Iowa are all states that show rapid growth in the Latino population, both from migration and from the relatively high birth rates in new settler groups. Many of these same states are experiencing slow or negative growth from existing population groups.  It doesn’t take a population expert to conclude that the Hispanic community will contribute significantly to future economic growth in these areas.

Successful businesses have long recognized that training and educating their future work force is the key to jobsite safety today and economic health down the road, but with language and cultural barriers still existing, many owners and managers struggle with effective ways to provide information to their Hispanic workers and their families. A great need exists for workplace safety information and education, in both Spanish and English, and for educational opportunities among Hispanic youth to prepare them for labor, management, and business ownership in the future.

National student loan company Sallie Mae has been paying careful attention to the growing Latino population and has recognized that providing financial aid is a crucial factor in providing educational opportunities to this group.  A study commissioned by The Sally Mae Fund revealed that a lack of resources and a lack of knowledge about where to get financial aid prevents many qualified Latinos – from youth to adults- from even considering higher education, including trade schools, degree programs and universities. The Sallie Mae Fund responded to this and other studies by developing a bus tour that would enter cities of all size across the country and provide free bi-lingual information about education planning. 

Providing education of all kinds for employees and their families is one way to help create the workforce and the consumer base you want in the future. If you have Hispanic employees who are exploring opportunities in education for themselves or their children this bus tour is designed to deliver information in an accessible way in a city close to you.

To find the bus tour schedule for fall 2007, go to The Sallie Mae Fund website.

Suzanna de Baca is President of Private Capital Solutions Group.  She is a Registered Representative and Financial Advisor of Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS), 7 Hanover Square, New York, NY 10004, (888) 600-4667.  Securities products/services and advisory services are offered through PAS, a registered broker/dealer and investment advisor. Private Capital Solutions Group is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS.
PAS is a member NASD, SIPC.
Material discussed is meant for general illustration and/or informational purposes only and it is not to be construed as tax, legal or investment advice. Although the information has been gathered from sources believed reliable, please note that individual situations can vary, therefore the information should be relied upon when coordinated with individual professional advice.