"Working Their Way Up"
•	Amilcar Aleman at the Falls Church Silver Diner, where he earns about $45,000 a year. His employer has paid for classes in English, and is helping him with his residency status.
•	In 1995, he got a break at the Silver Diner. Aleman was working as a cook at both the Silver Diner in Rockville and at a nearby seafood restaurant. To retain its hard-working employee, the diner agreed to match his combined wages at both restaurants. Then, the chain began promoting him. Now, he works as the kitchen manager at the Falls Church diner, earning about $45,000 a year in salary in bonuses.
•	"Companies have now focused much more dramatically on identifying jewels in the rough and investing in those guys and their leadership, language skills, people skills and education," said Patrick Meskell, senior vice president of human resources Rockville-based Silver Diner, Inc.
•	"Not everyone comes to you with the skills you want," Meskell said. "If they have the right personality, you can teach them the rest. That has been a lesson for us and other companies: Stop looking for perfection. You cannot train attitude."
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