Demand for Bilingual Workers Creating Hundreds of New Jobs Along Border

Rio South Texas region lands another large call center.

EDINBURG, Texas, Aug. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Citing demand for a bilingual workforce, Maximus, Inc. has just opened a new customer contact center in Edinburg, Texas, along the US/Mexico border. Up to 400 local job-seekers are expected to be hired by the end of 2012.

Edinburg is one of the communities that make up Rio South Texas, a rapidly growing metro region in the southernmost tip of Texas. Of the approximately 1.2 million residents, the majority are bilingual, making the region a popular locale for a variety of call centers, BPOs, and other commercial, retail and industrial activities.

“As the Hispanic population continues to grow rapidly in the U.S., the related needs for that population grow as well. Boasting a workforce that can fluently engage individuals in either English or Spanish is a huge plus for this area,” says Raudel Garza, Executive Director with Rio South Texas Economic Council.

Maximus is not the first major employer to discover the benefits of finding commercial real estate in Rio South Texas. T-Mobile, Convergys, United Health Care, Time Warner Cable, Teleperformance, Infinity Insurance, Advanced Call Center Technologies, Penncro, and others have large facilities in the region.  There are over 8,800 call center employees here.

“We have a young abundant workforce with a strong work ethic. Almost all of the children being raised here grow up hearing and speaking two languages, and most residents can easily and comfortably converse in both English and Spanish,” says Nelda Ramirez, Edinburg EDC’s Executive Director.

A bilingual workforce is just one of many reasons the region has blossomed into one of the most attractive areas in America for back office operations. The past decade has witnessed unprecedented growth in population, job growth, and investment in the region.