My wise old grandmother used to invoke the Spanish phrase, "When money is tight, a nickel isn't worth a dime."
Actually, that's not a phrase in Spanish (I think it's Yogi Berra). And my grandmother has never passed along anything resembling sage-like insight. She's much more likely to complain that young people don't wear enough clothes.
The point is that we Latinos don't have any special wisdom for dealing with this economic disaster, which has become (say it with me) the worst crisis since the Great Depression. In fact, the statistics indicate that Hispanics are ill-suited to weather this financial maelstrom. READ FULL STORYRead more…
Hispanic Professionals of Greater Milwaukee (HPGM) will host a leadership conference to provide Hispanic professionals with valuable tools to enhance leadership skills and expand their professional networks.
“These resources can help set Latinos apart in this competitive, shrinking job market,” said Yvonne Brodsky, Executive Director of HPGM.
The half-day event will promote leadership development among Hispanic professionals. It will be held on Friday, March 20 at the Wisconsin Club from 7:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. This year’s conference will provide professionals with a forum to share leadership experiences across industry sectors, opportunities for professional development and a platform for networking. READ FULL STORYRead more…
Hispanic workers 50-Plus are a vigorous group of “invisible boomers,” who could help employers solve projected labor shortfalls in the coming years, according to a new study released by AARP last week. This article for New England EthnicNEWz is by Eduardo A. de Oliveira, a New America Media Fellow working on the Ethnic Elders Newsbeat, a NAM project sponsored by The Atlantic Philanthropies.
When Jacob Lozada was 13, a neighbor came knocking on his door in San Jose, Puerto Rico, to tell his family that his grandfather had fainted at work.
“My father said, ‘Son, this is a blessing.’ I didn’t understand why,” Lozada recalled.
When the elder Lozada came home, Jacob’s father told him it was time to retire.
“And what I did not understand, until later in my life, was why a 60-year-old man would want to get up at 5:00 in the morning to go to work cutting sugar cane, which was one of the worst jobs anybody could have in the tropics, especially in Puerto Rico,” Jacob Lozada added.
Lozada, a board member of AARP (formerly called the American Association of Retired Persons), was a panelist at a seminar called “Older Hispanic American Workers: Current Status and Future Prospects.” The panel was one of many at the AARP Diversity Conference in Chicago last week with the theme, “The Power of Inclusion.” READ FULL STORYRead more…
An Arkansas rice mill has agreed to pay $350,000 after the federal government found the company discriminated against hundreds of women and non-Hispanic job applicants.
The U.S. Labor Department announced that Producers Rice Mill Inc., based in Stuttgart, discriminated against 246 females and 363 non-Hispanics who were seeking work as machine operators or laborers with the farmer-owned cooperative. The Labor Department alleged the cooperative engaged in hiring discrimination over 2004 and 2005. The 609 people will be paid back pay and interest. READ FULL STORYRead more…
With the unemployment rate of the Hispanic population in the United States nearing 10 percent, now is the time to start thinking about sectors that are defying the dismal trends.
Carlos Sanchez, a manager with the Hispanic-bilingual job site Saludos.com, said even though this is the worst economy he has seen in 40 years, there are a few bright spots.
But finding them, he adds, might take some sacrifice on the part of job seekers.
"There are amazing opportunities out there for people who have skill sets and tools," he said. "Especially bilingual people. . . . But people have to look for these opportunities. You can't put your head in the sand and feel sorry for yourself." READ FULL STORYRead more…
When a large white van slowed near Kennedy Park on a recent sunny -- but very cold -- November day, about six men didn't wait for it to stop before they opened the doors and jumped inside.
They were day laborers -- most were Ecuadorean immigrants -- and they were hoping for some work.
The contractor, who was building a house, only needed two workers that day. "Take me, take me," some of the nearly 20 men who gathered around his van shouted.
Wall Street may get the big publicity, but the effects of the country's economic downturn are felt on many other streets, including those in downtown Danbury, where day laborers seek work in construction, landscaping and cleaning. READ FULL STORYRead more…
Nancy C. Andrade is President and General Counsel of Mexifeast Foods, Inc. Ms. Andrade is a graduate of Loyola University Chicago with a B.A. in Political Science and law degree from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
Ms. Andrade began her career in the food industry while practicing law at a large Chicago law firm. Ms. Andrade was one of only four Latino attorneys at that time and happened to be the only attorney of Mexican ancestry. Being the resident Mexican “expert”, colleagues and staff would often ask her where one could get authentic Mexican tamales. It so happened that Ms. Andrade’s parents operated a part-time catering outfit at the time and was able to refer the tamale inquiries to her parents, who gladly filled tamale orders.
The popularity of her parents tamales grew so much at the firm, that she decided to establish an ordering system similar to “Market Day” for the Christmas Holidays. Having sold 200 dozen tamales in a 6 week period and 300 dozen tamales the following Christmas season, she knew she was on to something and THAT sparked the creation of Mexifeast Foods, Inc.
Mexifeast is a family owned business which sells authentic Mexican tamales to retail outlets in the Midwest. Accounts include Whole Foods Market, Wal-Mart stores in the greater Chicago area, and Fox & Obel Food Market. Mexifeast has been in business for 4 years and sales have systematically increased each year.
learn more about Mexifeast by visiting >> MEXIFEAST WEBSITERead more…
More than half of directors (55 percent) at U.S. publicly-traded companies said they would not like to see their boards become more diverse by increasing their minority representation, according to a recent survey conducted by Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. (NasdaqGS:HSII - News) and the Center for Effective Organizations (CEO) at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business. READ FULL ARTICLERead more…
The men who coined the phrase, "The Burrito as Big as Your Head", are branching out of the restaurant business.
LaBamba Restaurant owners will soon unveil a new Hispanic foods grocery store in Bloomington.
Many people are familiar with LaBamba's "burritos as big as your head", but now LaBambas Restaurant owners are opening one of the largest Hispanic grocery stores in Central Illinois.
Six brothers started the LaBamba Mexican food chain in Champaign back in 1988. The business has since grown, and Wednesday, they will open their 26th restaurant, but this one will be within their new Hispanic Grocery Store. READ FULL STORYRead more…
Women's advancement to the top leadership positions at Fortune 500 companies continues to stagnate, according to the latest report from nonprofit Catalyst.
The 2008 report found women held 15.1 percent of board seats at Fortune 500 companies, up slightly from 14.8 percent in 2007. READ FULL ARTICLERead more…
Valley’s Latino consumers appear to buck national economic slowdown
It's a week till Christmas, and Itzel Garcia is looking to buy a gift for her daughter.
Armed with a gift card, she decides for a dress at Union Gap's Macy's store. The 19-year-old Garcia says that though there's a recession, she still feels she has to buy gifts for her friends and relatives.
"I guess you still need to buy, you still need to shop around," says Garcia. "You feel so bad not to get people stuff. You just manage around and try to go for the sale."
Garcia is just one of the Yakima Valley's countless Latinos who are braving the recession and turning out in droves to local small businesses and national stores like Wal-Mart, Sears, Target and Macy's to do their Christmas shopping.
There's no breakdown of sales for Latinos, but anecdotal evidence suggests that local Latinos -- who make up more than 40 percent of the Valley's population -- account for a growing portion of the holiday season's sales. Jason Ostrer, Macy's store manager, says the Union Mall store did better than last year during the busy day after Thanksgiving, or what merchants call Black Friday.
Read more…
Yolanda Cuevas is living proof that the American dream is obtainable.
Founder, president and CEO of Cuevas Distribution Inc., a laboratory, medical and safety supply distribution company in Fort Worth, Cuevas is recognized as a pioneer in her industry and has captured nearly every top honor for her business acumen. Region III of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Texas Association of Mexican American Chambers of Commerce and the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce have each named her Hispanic Business Woman of the Year. READ FULL STORYRead more…
The smell of spicy meat permeates the tiny grocery store on Main and Racine streets.
Brimming shelves offer canned goods with brand names such as “Goya” and “La Morena,” along with spices and produce you don’t find at your average grocery store.
Customers murmur “perdoname” or “excuse me” as they squeeze through the narrow aisles to order chorizo sausage from the butcher or pick up some fresh tomatillos.
Soccer jerseys and piñatas hang gaily from the ceiling, welcoming patrons to this little slice of Hispanic culture.
Janesville’s handful of ethnic grocery stores—most of them Hispanic—have found a niche offering unique products and proving gathering spots for immigrant communities and fans of international cuisine. READ FULL STORYRead more…
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is experimenting with a new Latino-themed warehouse store as it hunts for U.S. growth, despite a mixed history at ethnic forays by other retailers.
The Más Club, which opened in Houston on Thursday, aims to satisfy the yearnings of recent immigrants for the familiar foods of home -- in American-style bulk sizes. The Sam's Club spinoff is part of a broader effort by the retailer to target the nation's fast-growing Latino population with dedicated stores.
It also comes as Wal-Mart aims to reinvigorate revenue gains at its Sam's Club warehouse stores. Its share of Wal-Mart's $401 billion in sales has slipped since 2005 to 11.7% from 13.3% as international revenue has jumped to 24.6%, from 18.7% over the same period.
The Bentonville, Ark., retailer is also testing a service-heavy Sam's Club that caters exclusively to small businesses while also targeting Latinos with a new food store called Supermercado de Walmart. READ FULL STORYRead more…
The Washington Attorney General's Office is alerting residents about a phone scam in which Spanish-speaking callers claim to be representatives of an insurance company. In some cases, the callers also provide the names of actual insurance companies and/or agents.
Hispanic residents from Seattle to Yakima have reported receiving phone calls from Spanish-speaking callers who claim to be from "the insurance company." The female callers ask for bank account information they claim is needed to process insurance payments. The callers have left messages if owners aren't home, along with phone numbers that start with 800, 877 and 752 area codes. READ FULL STORYRead more…
A new study shows immigrants, Latinos and Asians are a political and economic powerhouse in Florida.
Research done by the Immigration Policy Center shows that Latinos in Florida bring in over $100 million in consumer purchasing and own 1-in-6 businesses.
The study also shows Florida's Immigrant workers pay an estimated annual average of 20 billion dollars in taxes and Asian owned businesses generate roughly $11.2 billion in sales annually. READ FULL STORYRead more…
With the struggling economy, many business leaders think that when it comes to marketing it's good to think Hispanic.
That's because the Hispanic market continues to grow, not only across the U.S., but right here in Arizona.
With the struggling economy, many business leaders think that when it comes to marketing it's good to think Hispanic.
According to the Hispanic chamber of commerce, Hispanics have the ability to spend upwards of $1 trillion here in the U.S.
That's why they say businesses should market to entire families.
Harry Garewal with the Chamber said, "We are very brand loyal. Once we latch onto a particular brand chances are we're gonna stay with that brand."
Lupe Dalluge manages the Flower Shoppe in Tempe. She realized quickly how important marketing to the Hispanic culture is. READ FULL STORYRead more…
A Washington think tank says Nevada had the highest unemployment rate among Hispanics in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2009.
The Economic Policy Institute, a labor-leaning economic think tank, says in a report that the state's unemployment rate among Hispanics was 16.4 percent. California came in second at 15.7 percent.
The report says the rate is due in part to a large number of job losses in the construction industry.
The overall Nevada unemployment rate in the quarter was 11.3 percent. READ FULL STORYRead more…
Google's grants program favors nonprofits run by whites and Asians, in effect is raising ad prices for African-American and Hispanic nonprofits, a new report says.
Over the past three years, Google has given away $300 million worth of free advertising on its site, says the report from TechMission, an association of Black and Latino-led nonprofits addressing the digital divide.
That $300 million in advertising grants is used by recipient nonprofits to bid on specific search terms related to their organizations and missions.
This practice has "flooded the market" for nonprofit ads with virtual dollars, the report says, forcing nonprofits that do not receive grants to pay more for search terms.
TechMission estimates 95 percent of Google Grants recipients are nonprofits led by whites or Asians, and only five percent are led by African-Americans or Hispanics. READ FULL STORYRead more…
The KPMG Foundation is marking the 15th anniversary of its Minority Accounting Doctoral Scholarship program by announcing today it has awarded a total of $390,000 in scholarships to 39 minority doctoral scholars for the 2009 - 2010 academic year. Of the awards, eight are to new recipients scheduled to begin their accounting doctoral program this fall, three are to new recipients who have already begun programs, and 28 are renewals of scholarships previously awarded.
Each of the scholarships is valued at $10,000 and renewable annually for a total of five years. The Foundation established the scholarship program in 1994 as part of its ongoing efforts to increase the number of minority students and professors in business schools -- and has since awarded $8.7 million to minorities pursuing doctorate degrees. READ FULL STORYRead more…
