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Workplace Integration as a Key for Business Success

By Matthew Aho

ASCOA hosted a public luncheon to discuss the importance of workforce integration for business success. As immigration reform becomes a priority in the United States, the private sector, which employs a large number of Hispanic immigrants, will play a decisive role for policy development.

Speakers

  • Martha Artiles, Chief Diversity Officer, Manpower, Inc.
  • Gary Denton, Manager of Human Resources, Tyson Foods, Inc.
  • Mayor Karl Dean, Mayor of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County

Summary

As part of the AS/COA’s Rockefeller-funded Hispanic Integration Initiative, the Americas Society and Council of the Americas hosted a public luncheon in Nashville, TN, on August 11, 2009, to discuss the importance of workforce integration for business success.

AS/COA’s Hispanic Integration Initiative has hosted a series of public events and private meetings in other non-traditional “gateway” cities in the United States, such as New Orleans, LA, and Atlanta, GA, bringing together representatives from the public and private sectors, as well as from community and religious organizations.

Integration as an Avenue to Economic Growth and Vitality

In her introduction of Mayor Dean, Susan Segal, AS/COA President & CEO, applauded the campaign that Mayor Dean led against an English-only proposition that was soundly defeated in Nashville in January 2009. The proposition would have prohibited the city’s government from offering services in any language other than English. Mayor Dean pointed out that the energy and vitality of the city of Nashville came in large part from the immigrants that arrived and that, when the bill was presented, the role that the city government needed to take was clear. He explained his opposition to the English-only proposition by enforcing the idea that Nashville’s growth depends largely on its ability to accept newcomers and help them integrate and on it being seen as a welcoming environment for business. To defeat the bill, the labor, religious, immigrant, and progressive communities all came together, a clear signal of the overall opposition to the bill. Mayor Dean applauded the city of Nashville and the communities that came together: “we are the only large city in America that has been tested like this, and the good news is that we passed the test.”

In line with his commitment to making Nashville a welcoming city, Mayor Dean highlighted a number of programs his administration has undertaken to help immigrants integrate and succeed in Nashville. He discussed the creation of the New Americans Advisory Council, which was created to address issues that affect new Americans in the Nashville community. He also described the establishment of a Minority Business Advisory Council to find ways to expand opportunities for minority-owned businesses.

The Role of the Private Sector in Integration

Employing a large number of Hispanic immigrants, the private sector plays a key and often overlooked role in integration. As immigration reform becomes a priority in the United States, the voice of the private sector can prove to be decisive in setting the tone for the policies developed. Christopher Sabatini, senior director of policy at AS/COA outlined the rationale behind Hispanic integration programs and particularly strengthening the voice of the business community in defense of immigrants. He noted that even anti-immigrants would have a difficult time criticizing integration programs: “You can be against immigrants not speaking English, but who can be against learning it? You can criticize immigrants for not adjusting to our education system, but who can be against efforts by the private sector to promote educational advancement?”

The Business Case for Integration

Gary Denton of Tyson Foods, Inc. presented his company’s reasons for supporting integration efforts, noting the differences seen in the productivity and effectiveness of his workforce. During the first three years of operations at Mr. Denton’s plant, the employee turnover rate was nearly 100 percent. This is in stark contrast to the reality today. Mr. Denton currently has over 1,700 team members producing over 1.3 million pounds (of product) per week and a turnover of under 15 percent—a number unheard of in the meat-packing industry. According to Mr. Denton, the low turnover rate has transformed the plant, becoming one of the most efficient in the industry—something that he attributes directly to the diversity and cohesiveness of his workforce.
 
Understanding the importance of workforce integration, Mr. Denton’s Goodlettsville-based plant provides off-site English as a Second Language classes with 100 percent reimbursement upon completion of the course. The company also operates a program to identify team members with the potential for upward mobility within the company and provides them with 12 to 18 months of training in business-related skills. Mr. Denton indicated that 70 percent of new hires in management positions come from the program and that 50 percent of the employees coming out of the program are bilingual.

Conclusion

Martha Artiles of Manpower, Inc. concluded the program by stressing the importance of high-level executives understanding the business implications for diversity and integration. She commented that in recruiting, it was important to look beyond the usual pools and therefore be able to access talent in a variety of forms and from a variety of sources. Understanding integration and diversity from a talent-recruiting perspective, she said, would be the best way to get CEOs to understand these issues as imperatives for success.

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