NCWorks got the job done with their latest job fair, which leveraged big wages for a big showing from the local workforce.
COVID-19 has had a major impact on NCWorks job fairs since 2020. Some have gone to a virtual setting, others have just been smaller versions of the pre-pandemic events, but in any case, the last few have seen a decline in participation by jobseekers. That wasn’t the case for the Aug. 27 fair at the Robert C. Carpenter Community Building. In the first hour of the three-hour event, 32 jobseekers came through the fair, and they came ready to work.
“I’ve emailed 12 applicants already and I’ve given about 15 to 20 people job information,” said Page McCurry, human services planner for the Macon County Department of Social Services.
Many local businesses and organizations have struggled this year to hire enough people to cover positions. While the causes are varied, most of them loop back around to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has dramatically reshaped many functions of the economy. Sydneye Trudics, human resources manager at Old Edwards Hospitality Group, said the hiring event was an encouraging sign that the labor shortage in Franklin is starting to alleviate, which is good news for the Highlands inn, which relies on a large Franklin worker base.
“It’s a big turnaround from the last few fairs,” Trudics said. “Maybe people are finally ready to work again.”
Focusing on a smaller number of employers that each had at least one position paying $15 an hour seems to have been a worthwhile gamble for NCWorks. Many of the jobseekers were looking to start a new career they could stick with long term and the high-wage guarantee removed some of the guesswork. For example, David Kinsland is a former physical education teacher who spent years working for several Macon County schools before he retired. He’s currently driving a school bus part-time, and he’s ready to start something new, so getting to stop by and talk to several employers in-person was helpful for him.
“I’m just looking for something a little bit more full-time,” Kinsland said. “I’m tired of having to do this online and not getting to talk to someone face-to-face.”
NCWorks Career Center Director Paula Alter was pleased by the results of the fair. It’ll be a few weeks before they know how many people got jobs because of the fair, but it’s already clear the event reached people who the career center had not reached through other means. Hopefully, that means employers and jobseekers both found what they were looking for.
“Some of the jobseekers we’ve seen today have never visited NCWorks before,” Alter said. “Some of them just saw the sign outside and they stopped by. It’s been a very successful day.”
For more information on local hiring resources, call the NCWorks Franklin career center at 828-369-9534.