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Despite rising unemployment in Lancaster County, there are still jobs to be found these days, say local labor experts. It's just a matter of making the right connections.
One of those opportunities is coming up later this month — the 2009 Chamber Job Fair.
"Last year, we had well over 1,000 [job seekers]," said Sandi Thompson, program director for the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce & Industry. "That was before the labor situation [deteriorated]. This year, I expect we're looking at 2,000."
That number is a sign of the county's jobless rate, which a Labor & Industry report last week pegged at 7.4 percent in July, a full 2 percentage points below the national average but still the highest local rate in the past 26 years.
But that number bodes well for employers who either have jobs to fill or are on the lookout for talent they can recruit when things do turn around.
And this year's job fair is being held in the new Lancaster County Convention Center, so there should be plenty of room for all those job seekers to make connections with prospective employers.
Doors will open to the public at 11 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, (following a student-only hour for local high schools at 10 a.m.) and will remain open until 6 p.m.
Initial contact"It's a great opportunity to meet people face to face," said Patty Pasquino, employment coordinator and recruiter for Willow Valley Retirement Communities, which employs about 1,300 people.
She has some part-time positions to fill in dining services and will be looking for nurses and nursing assistants.
With e-mailed résumés and online applications, companies have been getting away from such personal contact, Pasquino said.
"For applicants, it's hard to get that initial meeting," she said.
Employers also benefit from the face-to-face approach.
People who look good on paper may not be all that impressive in person, said Eric Rotz, who will be screening candidates to join the nearly 700 employees who work at Turkey Hill's manufacturing plant near Conestoga.
The company has been expanding its sales into New England and the Carolinas, he said, and has added 40 to 50 employees in the past couple of years.
And then, Rotz added, some job candidates with lackluster résumés may really stand out in person.
"After you've done this awhile, you kind of get an idea from the conversation," he said. "You know pretty quick if that person is going to fit the culture of your company beyond whatever skill set they have."
Vicki Beale, human resources manager for Sechan Electronics, which employs about 260 people in Lititz, also has positions to fill, but that wasn't the case when she registered for a booth.
She said she initially signed up "just to see what kind of talent was out there and to get our name out there a little bit."
Because the company manufactures electronic equipment for the military and doesn't sell to the public, it's not well-known outside the industry, even among its neighbors, which makes recruiting a little difficult, she said.
The company is looking for assembly people who can solder and build circuit boards, positions it usually fills through ads in the Sunday News, Lititz Record and Ephrata Review.
Sechan is an exceptional company with excellent benefits, Beale said.
"Most of the openings we have had, have been due to growth, not turnover. Our turnover is low," she said.
Beale will also accept résumés from engineers and management prospects.
"If we find a really outstanding candidate, we might see where we could fit them in even if we don't have an actual opening," she said.
The chance of finding that kind of candidate at the job fair is not all that far-fetched.
In a survey last year, nearly half the attendees had at least two-year college degrees and 30 percent had four-year degrees, with many holding supervisory or management positions.
That's up 50 percent from a similar survey in 2004, a trend that chamber organizer Thompson expects to continue.
"Those statistics are telling a very different story than what we had seen traditionally," she said.
Many of the job seekers are not among the unemployed, Thompson added, but are scouting around for a better job.
Among last year's attendees, 28 percent said job security was a priority for them, 24 percent were looking for health benefits, and 22 percent were seeking better pay.
Jobs are out there"There is job growth," said Lori Rank, supervisor of Pennsylvania CareerLink of Lancaster County.
"We have 172 jobs on our Web site," she said. "There is hiring going on." It's just that the number of unemployed has been growing more rapidly than the number of new jobs.
"We do see signs of a turnaround," said Scott Sheely, executive director of the Workforce Investment Board of Lancaster County. "We see hiring pick up in some areas, but we still see people laying off workers."
Rank's advice for those who have lost their jobs?
"This is not the time to get depressed," she said. "This is the time to take action. It's a matter of taking charge of the situation."
People should look at their skill sets and take advantage of the time they are unemployed to refresh those skills, Rank said.
And if it's been a number of years since they last had to look for a job, they should get help preparing their résumés.
Many of them have already turned to CareerLink.
"Last year [fiscal year 2007-08], we had roughly 6,000 first visits" to the agency's office at Liberty Place, Rank said. "This year we had 16,000 first visits."
Many of those people returned for additional help — 39,000 in the year that ended June 30 compared with 22,000 the year before.
Rank recommends that people start out by attending the Career Exploration seminar held at 1:30 p.m. every Tuesday. They don't need to sign up beforehand, and they'll learn about the top 100 jobs in the county and the services that are available to help them get employed.
People planning to attend the chamber's job fair can also get help on improving their résumés before they attend.
They can drop their résumés off at noon each Thursday, then return at 2 p.m. for a critique.
"Fridays, there's a résumé workshop with tips and guidelines on how to make it look better," Rank added.
CareerLink also offers coaching on advanced interview skills for those who join its Job Club or attend its Ready2Work program.
And the agency holds its own job fairs every two months in conjunction with Ready2Work graduations.
There are usually 10 to 15 employers at these small job fairs, Rank said, all of them with openings to fill.
The next one will be Wednesday, Sept. 9, at Liberty Place. It will be open 8:30-10 a.m. for Ready2Work graduates and 10 a.m.-noon for the general public.
There's still time for employers to sign up for a booth at the job fair. Cost is $450 for chamber members, $800 for nonmembers. Call 397-3531 for information.
Dennis Larison is editor of the business section and can be reached by telephone at 291-8753 or by e-mail at dlarison@lnpnews.com.
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