In the competitive job market, tech is changing lives. Today, most rag-to-riches stories that we come across are somehow connected to IT. From Bitcoin to AI, we see people becoming successful overnight all because of IT, and it seems that Hispanic Americans are soon going to cash on it as well.
As per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics report, tech jobs will see a boost of 13% by 2030. This makes IT the fastest-growing sector in the US. For a very long time, Asians dominated tech jobs. People from all over the world, especially South Asian countries were leading the tech industry.
During the same time, Hispanics were still struggling with basic issues like literacy rates and cultural issues. However, the tables have turned finally, and Hispanic tech workers have double representation in key US cities now.
Is it a good or bad thing, and is it going to affect the community in any way? Let us explore this together.
Hispanic Community and Their Interest in Tech
The interest of the Hispanic community in tech is not new. Latinos are known for using more social media than any other community in the USA, following social media trends, and being avid smartphone users. Their high reliance on social media and tech can be traced back to their roots.
Most of the Hispanics are immigrants with families back home. They use social media to communicate with friends and family. Moreover, they also need to be tech-savvy to send money home through effective apps.
Another very important contributing factor is the accessibility of technology. Most of the Latino immigrants came to the US and realized the importance of technology. Since the internet speed and overall technology advancement in Latino countries is relatively less, Hispanics love the affordability, ease, and value that is offered by tech companies.
For instance, the residential internet industry in the US is much better. There are more internet service providers in the US, ensuring that every customer gets the best value for their money. The packages offered by these ISPs are affordable, making sure every user gets to enjoy the best service. Moreover, Optimum, a reliable internet service provider, offers dedicated Optimum servicio al cliente so Hispanic users can seek guidance in their native language and feel included.
Hispanics in Tech Jobs
Now that Hispanics have better access to tech gadgets and tech education, we are noticing an increase in Hispanic tech workers. Although the numbers are not yet anywhere near the Asian workers in tech, it is slowly making progress.
To give you a prospect, within US cities, fewer than 5% of tech workers are Hispanic. The number might seem very small or even negligible; however, it is safe to say that over the last decade, the growth of Hispanic tech workers in the US has doubled. US cities like Atlanta, Baltimore, DC, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh have shown immense growth in the tech sector.
Among these regions, Philadelphia takes the lead with 16%, when it comes to Hispanic tech workers, while DC and Baltimore follow closely with 11% and 8%, respectively. However, regions like Atlanta (6%) and Pittsburg (4%) stay dangerously underrepresented when it comes to Latinos within the tech industry.
Moreover, considering the Hispanic population growth in the USA, the number is quite low.
This brings us to a very interesting question. What can be done to promote the growth of Latinos in the tech industry?
Let’s explore this together.
How to Improve Hispanic Representation in Tech?
Offer Tech Scholarships
Tech-specific scholarships are a great way to help the Hispanic community grow in the field of IT. There are a lot of tech scholarships offered by different tech schools. However, most of these scholarships do not follow any quota system, making it difficult for an already less-represented community to earn these scholarships.
Promote Tech Quota
The quota system has long been used for promoting education and skills among communities. The educational quota system has always been used to encourage the black community to get into higher education. Following the same suit, the government should now launch a tech quota system to ensure that Hispanics can grow in the tech industry and solve issues related to their community with the help of tech.
Start Tech Boot Camps
Most IV league institutes are already offering summer school programs for different communities. However, there is a need to encourage and promote tech-based summer school programs and boot camps among Hispanics. From coding to software development boot camps, these few weeks-long education programs help the students learn new skills and get inspired by the best names in the industry.
Offer Tech Access
Offering tech education and making technology accessible at a young age plays a very important role in raising a tech-savvy community. Most countries are already using this strategy by offering the best tech gadgets i.e., computers for educational purposes for children.
Launch Tech Competition
Healthy Competition is a great way to promote tech education among Latinos. Most Asian countries like China, South Korea, and Japan are especially focusing on launching tech competitions where students are encouraged to come up with ideas related to tech businesses. Moreover, the winning amount from these competitions works as a great motivation factor for parents who want to help their kids get into good colleges.
Fun Facts About Hispanic Representation in Tech
- In some US cities, fewer than 5% of tech workers are Latino
- 8% of tech workers are Hispanic or Latine
- 8% of STEM workers are Hispanic
