Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Is A Big Deal For Verizon Wireless In California

WALNUT CREEK, CA — With five million Asians calling California home — more than in any other state — Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is a big deal here. At Verizon Wireless, where one in every five employees is of Asian-American and Pacific Island (AAPI) heritage, May is a special time to celebrate and build even more workplace diversity.

Verizon Wireless is reaching out to support the fast-growing Asian-American community and promote events that celebrate the diverse arts and entertainment rooted in AAPI cultures.

The Asian-American population is expanding more quickly in California than anywhere else in the United States, according to the latest Census figures. That means it’s more important than ever for Verizon Wireless to have a multi-lingual workforce. A significant number of the company’s AAPI employees are bilingual, speaking English and Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin), Vietnamese or Korean.

Diversity in the Workplace
National organizations including Equal Opportunity Publications, Inc. and DiversityBusiness.com recognize Verizon for its emphasis on diversity. The company encourages the hiring and advancement of individuals of every background, and its success in building a team that reflects the population it serves. Verizon Wireless leads the wireless industry in customer loyalty and has earned a number of third-party awards for industry leading customer satisfaction.

“As a member of the Bay Area AAPI community, I am very proud to be part of a company that makes such a consistent effort to understand and support the needs of multicultural customers and employees,” said Jack Tang, executive director of network for Verizon Wireless.

Celebrating arts and culture
Throughout the year, Verizon Wireless sponsors popular community events and concerts, and connects with its Asian customers through culturally appropriate advertising, in-language marketing and contract information, and bi-lingual retail sales representatives in Asian communities.

This month, Verizon Wireless will host two major club events featuring the world-renowned talents EpikHigh and Far*East Movement. EpikHigh is a hip hop group from South Korea, composed of three members; and Far*East Movement (FM), a group of Asian American emcees whose single “Girls On The Dance Floor” is creating a buzz in the biggest clubs and radio stations in the world. For more information about Verizon Wireless-sponsored Asian community events, please visit www.verizonasianevents.com.

Supporting the community
In 2008, Verizon Wireless awarded more than $60,000 in HopeLine® grants to Asian-American community organizations in California. The grants funded domestic violence prevention programs, including direct services to domestic abuse survivors. For more information about HopeLine, please visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

In addition, Verizon Wireless has supported Cameron House in San Francisco’s Chinatown with tickets to a Far*East Movement concert in the Bay Area, and will provide tickets to the sold-out Korean Music Festival to the Koreatown Youth and Community Center, Inc. in Los Angeles.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s most reliable and largest wireless voice and data network, serving more than 86.6 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with more than 86,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

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