BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - The Home Depot is looking to hire 20,000 employees across the country this year and has partnered with four national Hispanic organizations to assist in its recruitment efforts.
Human resource managers from seven Home Depots in the region - including Derby, Bridgeport, Orange, Fairfield and Stratford - met Thursday at the Bridgeport store with two representatives of ASPIRA of Connecticut to discuss plans for getting the program started.
The Home Depot does not have a specific goal for the number of Hispanics it plans to hire, said Ron DeFe, a company spokesman.
The partnership, called "Unidos podemos/United we can,'' was announced Tuesday in a joint statement from the Atlanta-based home-improvement retailer and the ASPIRA Association, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, National Council of La Raza, and SER, Jobs for Progress National.
Bridgeport-based ASPIRA is the only group in the state that is participating in the hiring partnership. According to its Web site, ASPIRA of Connecticut is a nonprofit organization that promotes the education and leadership development among Latino youth with programs in Danbury, Bridgeport, Stamford, Greenwich, New Britain and Hartford.
Mark O'Hanlan, a human resources manager at the Home Depot in Danbury, said the partnership was borne out of Home Depot's commitment to the communities it serves and a desire to find good talent.
"We're a growing company that reflects our community,'' he said. "In order for us to continue to grow and be there for our communities, we need to be the employer of choice.'' O'Hanlan would not discuss specific figures but said wages at Home Depot depend on the experience of the employee and the specific job.
He said Home Depot offers an extensive medical benefits package as well as other perks, including tuition reimbursement and profit-sharing incentives.
O'Hanlan said the hiring partnership would provide Home Depot with a valuable pool of potential employees.
"These organizations represent a very talented and hard-working group of individuals, the kind that Home Depot is always looking to attract,'' he said. "To tap into such a group is a tremendous advantage to Home Depot.'' Vincent Siberon, executive director of ASPIRA of Connecticut, said the partnership is the first of its kind for ASPIRA. He said it made sense for the Hispanic community and Home Depot to team to recruit Hispanic workers.
"Latino home ownership is up and a lot of them shop here, so it's positive to have people from the community working here,'' Siberon said.
He said his group would be an entry point for Hispanic communities in Connecticut for those who are interested in working for the retail giant.
"We will try to match an individual with a specific job position and provide follow-up to see how it is going,'' he said.
As part of the effort, Siberon said his group will distribute posters and brochures that provide information about job opportunities at Home Depot through its school clubs, Latino churches and local family services.
Pete Mila, human resources manager at the Bridgeport Home Depot, estimated that his work force is 50 percent Hispanic. He expects to hire 50 new employees in the spring and said he hopes to continue recruiting talent from the Hispanic community.
He said each Home Depot will display bilingual posters and brochures that describe the partnership at their hiring kiosks.
"I feel very excited,'' Mila said. "Over the next couple of weeks I'll be interviewing candidates and touching base with ASPIRA. They're providing me with an additional resource to get the qualified people we need.''
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