In the last decade, the Hispanic/Latino population in the United States grew by 58% to more than 35 million, or 12.5% of the population. Latino workers comprise the largest labor force of any minority group. While many immigrants from Latin America are highly educated, large numbers of Latino immigrants are filling positions in virtually every industry, most notably in positions requiring unskilled labor. According to the Milken Institute, one million new immigrants are expected annually in the next decade, most of who will come from Latin America. By 2050, Latinos are expected to represent 25% of the population, or 96 million people.
As the fastest-growing ethnic group in the U.S., Latinos represent more than 30% of the workforce in Southern California, and have significant populations in Texas, Florida, New York and Illinois. There is also a marked increase in the immigrant Latino population in many other states, including in the Midwest.
According to The Los Angeles Times, the Latino immigrant population in the heartland has nearly doubled in the last decade in some areas, breathing new life into parts of rural America where otherwise the populations are draining. Towns such as Worthington, Minnesota, expanded by 13% with the arrival of nearly 2,000 Hispanics. In states such as Iowa and Kansas, immigrant workers are filling positions in meat-processing plants and in other manufacturing and food-processing plants. Because Latinos are a rapidly expanding workforce, there are new challenges for company management in these states. Where there has been little or no existing Hispanic population, there are very few bilingual supervisors and managers as there are in states such as California, Texas and Florida, which have been home to Hispanics for many generations.
Culver's Frozen Custard and ButterBurgers, a Wisconsin based chain of over 200 franchise restaurants in 11 states, mostly in the Midwest, made a point of providing training sessions for Hispanic cross-cultural understanding at their recent convention of more than 1,000 owners/operators and managers. "Our southwest restaurants know how wonderful the Latino workforce is. They are dedicated, loyal and extremely hard-working individuals," said Karen Stoll, Culver's Vice President of Administration and the session organizer, "yet, until recently in the Midwest, many Midwesterners little experience with the culture and were hindered by language and culture issues. Through this session, we have pinpointed communication barriers and have developed strategies for improvement."
Latino newcomers have a significant impact on the U.S. economy, both as workers and as consumers. Organizations are recognizing the important role human resources plays in using cultural awareness and sensitivity in communicating with their valued immigrant workforces. To stay competitive, companies must find ways to improve the performance and efficiency of all of their employees and immigrant workforces create new and unique challenges in this area.
The challenges employers face extend beyond language differences. Foreign-born Hispanics, like other immigrant groups, have built-in cultural values, behavior patterns and ways of thinking that affect communication at the workplace. Employers who do not take the time to increase their awareness of these differences run the risk of miscommunication, decreased productivity and increased turnover.
Obviously, the biggest communication obstacle is the issue of language. Many low-skilled Latino immigrants who come to the U.S. for entry-level positions are intimidated and overwhelmed by the U.S. and learning English is a huge barrier for them. Of course, it would make things much easier for management if they all learned English, but this is often not proving to be the case. Even so, their skills as employees continue to play a vital role in our economy. Communicating in Spanish not only improves employee comprehension; it establishes emotional comfort and trust. It can work to a company's advantage to provide ESL (English as a Second Language) classes on site or by offering bonuses for those who complete ESL programs offered in the community.
Lorene, a housekeeping supervisor at a hotel, found her Spanish-speaking staff to be most cooperative and helpful when she asked them to teach her Spanish words and phrases. They were eager instructors and especially motivated by Lorene's willingness to learn. As she struggled and made mistakes, she made it less intimidating for the housekeepers to work on learning English. It works to an employer's advantage to adopt an attitude that communication effort goes both ways.
English-speaking executives at Presort Partners in Vernon, California, are required to take an in-house Spanish class. Classes are designed specifically for management´s needs and responsibilities - to give them survival Spanish with a vocabulary that is relevant to their workday interactions. The class includes using their new language skills by "interviewing" some of the Latino employees. The employees appreciate the effort that the office staff is making on their behalf and the class time helps to open communication. The company also provides weekly ESL classes, which are free to employees and held during work hours.
It is important to provide Spanish translations of materials that will be understood by all Spanish-speaking employees, as terminology and idiomatic expressions often vary among nationalities. There are words that all nationalities understand, but some Mexican terms and expressions may be unfamiliar to those from other Spanish-speaking countries and vice versa. When translating an employee handbook, be certain that the translator is able to provide a Spanish translation that truly conveys the meaning of the English version of the handbook while providing a legally solid translation.
It is also worth the effort to provide training sessions, new hire orientation classes and open enrollments in Spanish. For most immigrants, training in their native language can help to ensure compliance with safety rules and harassment policies. In addition, adding visual aids and demonstrations to the training will enhance learning because many unskilled workers have little formal education. Your bilingual employees can be helpful liaisons, but be aware of liability concerns when asking bilingual employees to perform tasks beyond their responsibilities. If you ask your bilingual line supervisor to interpret your sexual harassment prevention training program, you would not be able to verify that his or her translation was correct if you were challenged by a harassment claim.
Recent immigrant employees are often unfamiliar with the benefits that U.S. companies provide. Because their participation benefits both the company and its workforce, it is worth the extra time and effort on the part of management to introduce these practices.
Jackie Giacomazzi, Employment/Labor Relations Manager for Professional Community Management, Inc., an agent for Leisure World in Laguna Woods, California, makes sure that most company communications, policies, benefits and training are provided in Spanish to their nearly 320 Spanish-speaking employees. "It's a big help that our insurance carrier provides their presentations in Spanish and that our bank provides Spanish-speaking staff to help employees to open bank accounts," she explained. "It saves payroll costs if more employees are on direct-deposit programs. Also, check-cashing services are expensive and I am glad that our banking programs help many of our employees from having that unnecessary expense."
Hispanic immigrants can be wary of financial institutions. Because they are accustomed to working with cash and often do not have bank accounts, they are not prepared for payroll direct-deposit programs or payroll deduction plans. Working with a local bank or credit union that has a bilingual staff is important in getting them to open savings accounts where the direct deposits can be made. Thereafter, the employee can withdraw cash and avoid the expense of costly check-cashing services.
Hispanics also tend to not trust payroll deduction plans. They don´t recognize the benefits until they have a medical emergency or they learn too late that they could have prepared for retirement. Another adverse affect of minimal participation by lower-tiered workers is that a company´s management is often unable to make maximum 401K contributions because the total employee contributions do not meet the necessary legal requirements.
Communication Specialist Benjamin P. Herrera of Mass Mutual Retirement Services provides his presentations in Spanish about such benefits as insurance programs and 401K to Spanish-speaking employees. "Typically, I begin with the very basics in the concept behind a retirement savings plan." Herrera said. "Many Latinos are unfamiliar with the concept of putting away money now for them to have later because of their cultural upbringing. To them, it's a matter of self sacrifice for their loved ones and when they can't provide income anymore, they then become reliant on the very ones the sought to support."
Herrera credits Spanish presentations as a major factor to increasing enrollments at Mass Mutual. "Many of the Latino audiences I encounter come from a culture where if someone has authority over you, then they're more than likely to take advantage of you," Herrera explained. "Taking the steps to earn their trust is instrumental in getting eligible participants to enroll in their employer-sponsored retirement plan or increasing deferrals for participating employees," he said. "I have also found that if supervisors and crew leaders advocate and participate in the company-sponsored retirement plan, the likelihood of participation among their direct reports is very high.
"A good example is the results of the Spanish enrollment meetings I held for a new client, Monier Lifetile, whose workforce is 70-80% Spanish-speaking. We had a 20% increase (160 new participants) in enrollment and a 35% increase (280 participants) in deferrals for existing participants. These results are common amongst my group of Communication Specialists."
Bank of America, Citibank and Well Fargo Bank provide programs for financial education of employees in Spanish. These banks help by opening bank accounts without requiring social security numbers if the employee has the right identification and if the account is opened through the auspices of the employer.
"Bank of America is one of the lead banks in allowing the ´matricula´ as a form of I.D.," said Ken Preston, Vice President of Corporate Communications. "These I.D. cards are issued by the Mexican Consulate for Mexican nationals living in the U.S. and is a program that began in August of 2001. The California cities of Santa Ana and San Francisco were the first to accept the matricula cards as a legal form of identification. Bank of America (and other banks) are accepting this 'matricula' card in order to open a bank account, usually only asking for another form of I.D. such as a utility bill."
These efforts have resulted in companies having more of their employees on automatic payroll deposit plans, which makes payroll easier and less expensive for the company. It also benefits employees who can use a "cash card" to get cash from ATM machines and at many stores. They now have the advantages of having a bank account, but don't have to write checks (something that is foreign to many of them). It keeps their cash safer, but easily accessible.
The Hispanic culture tends to be more hierarchical than that of the U.S. Unskilled laborers in Mexico, for example, are not generally taught that they can grow within the company, even if they show leadership and improve their skills. The Latino culture carries an engrained respect for authority and an employee would dare not challenge a boss for fear of causing him to ´lose face.´ This attitude discourages innovative thinking and initiative. As a result, American supervisors often make incorrect assumptions, such as that Mexican employees do not have good ideas or are able to show initiative. These immigrants are simply socialized to carry out orders.
For companies with especially high numbers of Hispanic employees, their future success, possibly even their survival, depends on moving some of these employees into leadership roles. As always, some leaders emerge naturally, but many companies are realizing that making a concerted effort to educate and promote their Latino workers is critical. This might involve gearing training programs to meet the needs of these employees.
Michael Lawson, operations Manager of North Texas Healthcare Laundry, encourages personal and professional growth and understands that employees need recognition as well as financial rewards. Two of his employees, both from Mexico, worked hard to complete an industry-related technical course. This was a special accomplishment for them because their English was limited and they had very little formal education. Along with a promotion, Lawson made sure the employees were well recognized by announcing their accomplishment in a local Spanish-language newspaper, placing their pictures and a report in the company's quarterly newsletter and posting their photos in the company's lobby. The employees received personal gratification from this recognition and the company's message was clear that they promote and reward staff members who strive for excellence.
Mixing Work and Family
Americans tend to separate work and family life. Family, however, is of primary important for Latinos and this may be felt at the workplace. For example, a Mexican worker may come into the workplace on his day off to pick up his paycheck with his wife and children in tow. While most Americans would considerate it more appropriate for the family to wait in the car, the Mexican employee would more naturally bring his family into the office. His supervisor may be across the room and immersed in his work, yet the employee would be pleased for the boss to make it a point to greet him and to meet his family. Taking time for personal interaction will help to engender more trust and loyalty from this employee. It can also help to break down the stereotype that Latinos hold that Americans are cold and have little regard for common courtesies. North Texas Healthcare Laundry keeps a canister of candy just for these family visits to the office.
Atlas Spring of Gardena, California, was concerned that their Spanish-speaking employees did not feel as though they were an integral part of the team. To help these employees to feel more connected and appreciative of their benefits, the company offered a "Company Fair" that involved the employees and their families. The company provided food, clowns and games and invited their human resources vendors to participate. Some of the vendors, which included insurance companies, worker's compensation and the credit union, sponsored booths with a bilingual staff. To encourage questions, each time an employee or spouse queried about their benefits or services, he or she was given a raffle ticket. The non-working wives were especially glad to have the opportunity to learn more about these benefits, as they are the ones who generally take the children to the doctor.
Atlas Spring also invited representatives from the community, such as the local city college, to provide information on English as a second language (ESL) classes and other education programs, and a credit counselor to provide information about debt options. The local sheriff offered free fingerprints of the children and the fire department brought a fire truck, where the kids got their pictures taken. The company also provided video games for the children on company computers, a first-time computer experience for many of them, which was a big hit. The day was successful and, more importantly, team effort increased dramatically from that time on.
When Communicating is Beyond Words
In the U.S. workplace, communication is expected to be direct and objective. For example, if we ask a supervisor if the shipment will go out on Friday, we expect him to report any problems or holdups so we can help solve the problem or alert the customer to the delay. Culturally, Hispanics often prefer to be diplomatic and agreeable and would generally prefer to give a positive reply, even if he knows the shipment is delayed. Politely make it clear that in the U.S. business culture, accountability is more important than diplomacy, but don't expect this ingrained communication style to change overnight.
Most newly arrived Hispanic workers are not prepared to say that they don't understand. Their pride or their fear of being criticized or fired may cause them to say that they understand when they do not. The consequence may be work that is poorly performed, which can also be expensive, dangerous and illegal. When giving instructions, try to have them repeated in Spanish and clearly demonstrate the work to be performed. Warmly and openly ask them to show the process back to you and encourage them to ask for clarification.
In the U.S., we like to think that correction or criticism of our work should not be taken personally and should be taken objectively as a way to improve our performance. Hispanics often do not separate work and personal attitudes and may take criticism personally, especially if this correction takes place in front of others. Adreina Prestridge, who is from Venezuela and a manager of over 100 Spanish-speaking employees at Direct Distribution Services in Los Angeles, said, "We (Latinos) take everything personally!" She added, "Latinos are hard working and loyal employees. The best way to gain our loyalty is to treat us well, not only in pay and benefits, but by respecting us and treating us with a personal care." Be sure to make corrections while alone and always do it with the utmost respect, never in a barking or harsh fashion.
Hispanics often view "Anglos" as cold and distant. "They will walk by and just wave across the room in the morning, but not take the extra few seconds to greet them, to say hello and ask how things are," commented a Hispanic worker. Those extra seconds of a friendlier, personal greeting go a long way to break down the stereotype that Americans are cold and distant.
Kentucky-based Fazioli´s Restaurants, which has over 400 stores in 32 states and the Philippines has discovered that demonstrating that you're a friendly employer, that you understand their culture, address language issues and offer career development tools, is a way to become a preferred employer. Fazoli´s has found it most productive to get the language and culture instruction going both ways.
Fazioli's managers are provided an eight-day program involving an intensive study of Hispanic culture and customs. With these skills, managers have improved their ability to recruit and retain Hispanic employees. Fazioli´s retention of Hispanic workers improved by 24% where the unit managers completed this Spanish immersion program.
According to Gartner/Dataquest estimates, U.S. employers will need to fill 55 million jobs in the next decade, but only 29 million employees will be available. These statistics make it clear that many more jobs will continue to be filled by Hispanic immigrants. The time, effort and expense made now to set up reach out to this growing labor force will result in a more productive work force - and a more productive company - for generations to come.