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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 17 JA N UA R Y 2 5 , 2 0 1 6 "It's really about the underutilization of their talents, and I think that's going to be repeated over and over again," says Chong. "I can talk about Portland, but you can multiply that with the popu- lation in Lewiston, Auburn, Biddeford and Saco." " e other thing about Portland is we're on the best lists for just about everything, and yet between 2000 and 2013 all the growth came from the immi- grant population," he adds. For professionals, it is a tough battle to get recerti- fi ed. In some cases, like MDs, it requires essentially starting from scratch and retaking tests and redoing residencies. So instead of holding out hope for what she says is a long road ahead that may not pan out, Sutton of the New Mainers Resource Center says she tries to get them into other jobs, like a physician assistant, that will draw upon their skills. "It's almost impossible for a physician to work again as a physician," says Sutton. " e University of New England has a physician assistant program. Someone may have to spend a little time getting into it, but it's a good way for a physician to get in the clinical fi eld again and use as much of their experience as possible." She says recertifi cation is an issue whether the person is an engineer, accountant or lawyer. Her program at Portland Adult Education tries to get newcomers versed in how to get a job and to improve their English through classes. "My focus has been on helping them get ready to work. at requires they know how to do a resume and look for a job and then interview for it," she says. She adds that one summer she ran an interviewing class with 15 people in it who had never been interviewed. Sutton says the Portland Adult Education build- ing is probably the most culturally diverse place in the state, with about 2,000 immigrants representing 81 diff erent countries. In terms of the educational background of people coming through the New Mainers Resource Center, which number around 200, 120 have a bachelor's degree and 18 have a master's degree. Additionally, nine have law degrees and 26 have MDs. Some New Mainers start from the bottom up in jobs doing dishes, driving taxis or working in the hospitality industry. " ese shouldn't be dead-end jobs," he says. "We have people who clean the fl oors at night or stock shelves. e offi ces downtown are being cleaned by these invisible people, these newly arrived immigrants." Several Maine companies are off ering upwardly mobile jobs, including L.L.Bean. e company hires around 5,000 seasonal employees at its peak business times to support its customer satisfaction operation in Freeport, according to Sharon Parritt, senior supervisor for learning and distribution at the company. at includes fulfi lling orders and handling returns. Just about everyone starts out as a seasonal employee, she notes, including now full-time employee Fatuma Hussein, who works in the distri- bution center and does some interpreting. Hussein, 29, was born in Somalia and grew up in Kenya. She came to Atlanta fi rst, and then to Maine in 2004. She started as a seasonal worker at L.L.Bean in 2008 and became full time in 2014. "Coming to L.L.Bean was good for me. I learned new skills. I was a picker, I monograph, I do single back- ings and I fold clothes. I do many things," says Hussein. "She is a highly engaged employee with a lot of skills, so she can go to many parts of the organization," says Parritt. She says every year seasonal and full-time employees go through diversity training, and that there is zero tolerance for any form of discrimination. Applying for jobs can be diffi cult for other reasons, including business practices and questions that value responses geared toward an individualistic society compared to a group society, says Elizabeth Greason, owner and principal consultant at Maine Intercultural Communication Consultants in Portland. "Online applications sometimes have drop down menus that only allow for American universities," she gives as one example. "People don't make it through the application process due to these small things that are inadvertent. And Americans use idioms such as 'Are you someone who grabs the bull by the horns?'" She says she tries to teach companies to use phrases like "Are you someone who takes initiative?" instead. So how welcoming is Maine? If you're from the Mid- dle East, it's cold, both in temperature and temperament. "Maine continues to be not welcoming but it is a tolerant place for refugees and immigrants because there's a philosophy to leave me alone, don't bother me," says Jalali. "People are indiff erent. at's better than hating you. Most refugees leave Maine mostly because they know someone somewhere else." Lori Valigra, Mainebiz senior writer, can be reached a t l v a l i g r a @ m a i n e b i z . b i z a n d @ LVa l i g r a Augusta | Bangor | Brunswick | Ellsworth | Portland 1-800-564-0111 | eatonpeabody.com Seth Brewster - Litigation Edward Feibel - Employment / ERISA Alfred Frawley - Intellectual Property Leslie Hallock - Employment / ERISA Bruce Hochman - Commercial Banking Erica Johanson - Litigation Anne O'Donovan - Employment / ERISA David Pierson - Construction Neal Pratt - Litigation David Wakelin - Employment / ERISA Matthew Worthen - Real Estate Meet Our Portland Attorneys

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