January 2005 January 4, 2005 Central American Free Trade Agreement; interacting with Latino customers; Day of the Kings; explaining health care options News President Bush has met with several leaders of Latin America recently and is expected to push Congress to ratify the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Costa Rica, The Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua have already signed the accord. 80% of tariffs on goods traded between those countries (and the US if it is ratified) would be eliminated immediately. With this agreement in place, not only would the U.S. get more products cheaper from Central America, but our country would be protecting a large market for our own products from the Chinese who have been trying to push their products all over of Latin America. Tips Office personnel trained in basic conversational Spanish are able to interact well enough with Latino customers to make them feel valued and comfortable. These trained employees can assist customers by greeting them appropriately, answering basic questions, and giving directions to the phone, bathroom, or another office. Latinos value friendliness and are highly likely to return to a business that is welcoming. Notes January 6 is The Day of the Kings (The Three Wise Men), often called Epiphany in the English-speaking world. The Three Kings, not Santa Claus, bring gifts to Latino children. The children even write letters to them. Why not sponsor a “Día de Reyes” party next year with its special “Roscón de Reyes” (a special circular cake) for your Latino employees and their children? Help Informing Latino employees in Spanish about their insurance options prevents complications later. In many instances, these employees insure themselves only and resort to hospital emergency rooms for primary care of family members. That jams those facilities and leaves the Latino with large bills. Often Latinos don’t understand that we have a public health system or how to use it. Have a Spanish-speaker explain how to access the public health system and where those facilities are located.

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