A culturally diverse mix of employees can be a huge benefit to your workforce. People of different backgrounds offer varied perspectives, raise cultural awareness, and foster team and individual productivity. However, all too often, Latino employees, in particular, don't get back what they contribute to their work environment. In a study by LinkedIn, 44% of Latino professionals admitted they've faced blatant discrimination or microaggressions at work.


As a business owner, you know that your work culture is only as good as its commitment to ensuring every member feels welcome and valued. To boost yours, you may thus want to make efforts to uplift Latino employees in the workplace. Here's where to start.

Provide upskilling opportunities




A common reason why Latino workers feel left behind is because many are aware they lack specific important workplace skills, like digital literacy. The US is the largest tech market in the world, comprising 33% of the global tech industry. That makes digital skills essential in the labor market. Yet a study by the US Department of Education shows that Hispanic communities have lower levels of digital literacy than the rest of the population.


As an employer, you can change this for your employees, so consider upskilling their capabilities in digital literacy. To train them in the relevant skills for today's digital age, you may want to provide them with learning opportunities in topics like engineering, UX design, and data science. This will make them more capable of making strategic business decisions that rely on such technological skills, making upskilling an investment that won't just benefit your Latino employees but your company as a whole. Check out Verizon for an example of a great upskilling program-it offers free online programs for employees to learn the various hard and soft skills needed for tech jobs.

Encourage employee resource groups




Latino employees are often encouraged to advocate for themselves. However, taking up the role of a solo educator can be daunting and potentially ineffective if the overarching work culture hasn't yet learned to prioritize POC voices. This is where Latino employee resource groups (ERGs) come into play. These can act as support networks for Latino employees who collaborate with company leadership to enact initiatives that foster inclusion, improve diversity, and drive social impact. Currently, 90% of Fortune 500 Companies have ERGs.


While ERGs are autonomous organizations separate from company leadership, business owners also have a role to play in aiding their efficacy. For example, you can communicate your inclusion strategies to solicit their opinions and invite them to contribute. You can also use your executive power to help them with their objectives-for example, making it easy for them to share information using the company's communication channels and rewarding those who lead and run ERGS with compensation and recognition. The gold standard is the entertainment company Comcast: its ERG, Unidos, works to educate, unite, and empower Latino professionals by creating professional development options, calling people to commit to serving multicultural communities with their talents, and working with management to better reach the business's goals.

Celebrate Latino heritage




Today's stratified political climate can be hostile toward your Latino employees, who are searching for a place to feel safe and esteemed. That's why it's essential that you, as a business leader, show that you appreciate the diversity within your team.


An excellent opportunity is to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15 to October 15. You can use this time to spotlight your Latino leaders and ask them to share their career journeys and achievements. You can also expose your employees to Latino culture by offering Latin American foods in the cafeteria-for example, flavorful mofongo or cheesy pupusas-and host team-building activities that involve learning Latin American dance styles like salsa or mambo. The AI company Samsara took this a step further by celebrating Latin American independence days in their office and throwing a happy hour, to the delight of their employees. Remember that a little bit of fun appreciation can go a long way.


Your Latino employees face many challenges in the workplace. You can uplift them by creating projects to amplify and highlight their talents and show how much you respect them.