Study Finds Rampant Illiteracy in L.A. County

An estimated 3.8 million Los Angeles County adult can barely read, write or speak English. "I can't move up in my job," she said in Spanish. A new extensive report on literacy problems in the Los Angeles area was released yesterday.  The study was launched in June 2003 by Mayor James K. Hahn and conducted by United Way with more than 100 private and public organizations participating. It produced some grim findings, such as, Fifty-three percent of working-age Los Angeles County residents have trouble reading street signs or bus schedules, filling out job applications in English or understanding a utility bill. The national average is 48%, according to the 1992 National Adult Literacy Survey. Educated immigrants who have not yet learned English, immigrants who are not literate in their native tongue and English-speaking high school dropouts contribute to the area's workforce literacy problems, according to the report released during a meeting at USC. They form an underclass of workers stuck in low-paying jobs, while employers cannot find enough workers to perform increasingly complex tasks. [more ]