Tesla Starts ESL Program After Austin Group Raise Hiring Concerns

Austin TX

27 October, 2021

2:03 PM

Description

AUSTIN, TX — Tesla has partnered with Austin Community College District to launch an English as a Second Language program at its new Texas gigafactory. The announcement comes after the Texas Anti-Poverty Project told the electric car manufacturer it could hinder job opportunities for Spanish speakers in the area. RELATED: Austin Grassroots Group Concerned Over Tesla's Hiring Practices Tesla, which is hiring 5,000 workers at the Austin factory, told the grassroots group and Austin-Travis County earlier this month it currently does not provide bilingual staff to translate for Spanish speakers at the plant. Live in Austin? Click here to subscribe to our free breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox and mobile devices. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and download our free mobile app on Android or iPhone. Group founder Ofelia Maldonado Zapata said both she and city-county officials were shocked by the news. "How can you build a plant in an area that is high [in] Spanish speakers when they're probably the ones building the plant?" Zapata said. Since February, both the grassroots group and Austin-Travis County have met with Tesla and neighbors from the Hispanic and Latino community at its monthly community meetings. Right now, Tesla is offering hundreds of jobs that only require some high school education or a diploma. But with English being a requirement at the company, Zapata said this language barrier can hinder opportunities for the Latino and Hispanic community in Austin. In response, Tesla announced its partnership this month with ACC for ESL classes. An ACC spokesperson told KXAN the program is "an ESL track for students seeking careers at Tesla," and it "is in the design and pilot stage now." They added they'll share more details in the next few weeks. Zapata says the group will be doing their part to get the word out on the pulpit, announcements at its congregations and let as many people know that they can be signing up for these classes. She also hopes Tesla will hire bilingual workers and supervisors who can help translate for native Spanish speakers when needed.