Role of Social Networks in Finding Jobs

Re “A Hidden Advantage for Some Job Seekers,” Nov. 28:

The social researchers are at it again. I learned as a child of immigrant parents that a job done well can lead to a better job; that working, like virtue, is its own reward. (Although I never rejected the paycheck.) When Pablo Cifuntas reported for work daily, arriving at the bus stop 5:30 a.m., working for little more than the minimum wage, for as many hours as his employer needed him, he was not manifesting anything else, these experts would have us believe, than the truth of the old saw, “It all depends on who you know.”

No, there is such a thing as a “work ethic,” and the earlier one internalizes it, the better life will be. With time that ethic, combined with a thirst for learning and a desire to improve oneself, can lead to what we old-fashioned types called the achievement of the American Dream. Grousing and blaming the “system” or the “networks” that give others an unfair advantage lead to a real dead end.

MANUEL H. RODRIGUEZ

Burbank

* I take issue with the headline. The words “hidden” and “advantage” imply active concealment or withholding, and thus an unfair benefit for Latin American immigrants.

I also do not see the reason for comparison of Latino immigrants and inner-city African Americans, other than that portions of each group suffer from poverty and unemployment. If Latino immigrants benefit from a “network,” how are they different from white, Jewish, Asian or any other group network? Why do they possess an “advantage” and those other groups do not? A network may help find and assist in employment but it is up to the industriousness of the individual to keep the job, let alone excel.

NICK MANZANARES

Whittier

* Your article illuminated a phenomenon that for me was a vivid part of my world. As an aspiring African American actor, my employment was sporadic. Over the years, I worked in many service jobs to supplement my income, including bartending, waiting tables, etc. It was evident that the service jobs for African Americans were disappearing. Now they are virtually nonexistent.

What this article does is elucidate the problem. I resent the oft-repeated statement that black people don’t want to work, but Latinos do. I hope this article brings to the forefront a problem that has been escalating for years. I hope it educates our detractors. I hope it helps to produce the necessary vehicle to interrupt the vicious downward spiral prevalent in our inner-city African American communities.

FRANK WILSON

Los Angeles