Job Fair Attracts Hundreds
More than 350 participated in our Job Fair this weekend, held at Portland Community College’s Rock Creek Campus.
One woman told me she’s been out of work since losing her Freightliner job two years ago, but now, after making some connections at the Job Fair, she had lined up a job interview next week. With tears in her eyes, she gave me a hug. And then she hugged two people standing nearby.
Many others told me they also had lined up new leads and interviews with some of the 20+ employers who were on hand looking to recruit good people.
Others were more somber. Many have been out of work for a long time. One middle aged man with a computer background told me he had been out of work for the first time in his life and he wasn’t sure if he could ever find a new job. He got encouragement from a career counselor who assured him he’ll be OK.
And so it went, at an event aimed at putting a dent in Oregon’s stubborn 10 percent unemployment rate.
Frankly, I was surprised by the high turnout. It told me that even though economic indicators were looking up, there are a lot of people in pain. People of all ages -- at all levels of experience. The news of an improving economy is of little comfort when you’re out of work and your unemployment benefits are about to expire.
Still, I was grateful so many people made so many connections that will hopefully turn into jobs.
And I’m grateful to the employers and participants, the cooks who served up lunch and to Portland Community College for dealing with an overflow crowd.
Someone asked me if we were going to do this again next year. I hope we get to a point where we don‘t need a Job Fair.
Senator Hass and Theresa Barnes of Goodwill Job Connection share the stories they heard during the Senator's first Job Fair on May 14th, 2011.
