Hispanic Heritage Month is a time to honor the contributions of Latinos in the U.S. It’s also a time for our nation’s policymakers to recognize that Latinos are at the heart of the American economy. By investing in workforce programs that support Latino workers now, policymakers can help secure our shared economic future.
Latinos are 64 million strong, driving $4.1 trillion in economic activity and making up a significant and growing share of the U.S. workforce. In fact, nearly 78 percent of all net new workers this decade will be Latino, contributing to fields that are essential to American prosperity, from healthcare and construction to technology and entrepreneurship. Latino-owned businesses are growing quickly, with Latina women launching businesses faster and sustaining them beyond the national average. And Latinos account for one of every four working-class Americans – an important fact given that the majority of the American workforce is working class.
Despite contributing more than ever, too many Latinos are losing economic ground. In a recent poll, the cost of living is a top concern for 52 percent of Latino voters, and jobs and wages are a top concern for 40 percent.
Rising costs and stagnant wages are further compounded by barriers to high-quality skills training, limited access to economic supports like affordable childcare, healthcare, and housing, and the digital divide.
Recent policy developments have only deepened these challenges. We’ve seen the implementation of executive orders and policy changes that we believe undermine important progress, along with congressional efforts to reduce investments in our communities through the budget reconciliation and appropriations processes. We’re also deeply concerned about immigration enforcement approaches that create fear and hardship for families who contribute significantly to our economy and communities.
Even as Latinos traverse systems that do not fully support their economic mobility, they continue to seek opportunities so their families can thrive. For example, 80 percent of Latino voters report that they would engage in skills training to get a better job or advance in their career, compared to just 63 percent of all voters.
This kind of determination, along with hard work and hope for a better future, fuels American innovation and prosperity. But prosperity matters most when it creates economic mobility and dignity for everyone. That’s why UnidosUS is creating a Latino Economic Agenda for Prosperity – a living, community-informed guide that highlights solutions with real promise and potential for even greater impact —that focuses on jobs and wages, in addition to housing, small business, and family security.
National Skills Coalition and UnidosUS are proud to work together to develop new ideas for workforce strategies that can create a stronger and fairer economic future, including ideas for expanding access to high-quality, inclusive skills training, promoting fair workplaces, and ensuring every job is a good job.
We’re not alone in recognizing the need for new workforce policies now. Latino voters strongly support a range of policies that would strengthen our workforce, from providing digital skills training so that workers can adapt to new technologies, to expanding opportunities for people to work and learn on-the-job through programs like apprenticeship.
And organizations rooted in Latino communities want public policies that make it easier to support and scale high-quality, inclusive skills training and career advancement for workers. This need comes up time and time again in the conversations we have with local UnidosUS Affiliates and workforce development leaders alike.
Just imagine the gains we could make for workers, small businesses, communities, and the economy if national leaders invested in workforce strategies like those crafted by Building Skills Partnership. Based in California, Building Skills Partnership creates opportunities for property service workers through skills training, immigrant inclusion, and career advancement. By bringing together diverse industry stakeholders, Building Skills Partnership is able to empower workers, meet the changing demands of the key industry sectors, and improve job quality in a way that benefits workers and employers. Their work shows that when we invest in Latino workers, we can strengthen entire industries. If we brought those investments to scale, we could boost the whole economy.
Hispanic Heritage Month is not only a time for recognition, but also for action. Latinos have always played an essential role in driving American prosperity — it’s time for Latinos to share fully in the prosperity they help create.
Over the next year, we hope you’ll join us in creating new strategies to drive real economic opportunity for Latinos and all of us. Our economic future depends on it.
