Tess Hill
CUMBERLAND — Living with today’s economy is hard and finding a job is even harder. Though the weather wasn’t very pleasant Thursday, many people came out to the One-Stop Job Center in hopes of finding employment at the job fair.
“I’ve been out of a job since November of last year,” said Oldtown resident Sharon McBride. “It’s a little more difficult for me because of my age, I’m older, and a lot of others are out of jobs, too. So it’s been really hard.”
McBride, who had worked at Country House and the Kensington, said she was let go when they decided to downsize and took away her position.
“I was looking for something similar to my old position, but I haven’t found anything,” she said. “My unemployment runs out in January, and I’ve already filed for all my extensions, so it’s getting to the point where yeah, I’ll take what I can get.”
Gerard Holland of Cumberland is also finding it difficult to find a job though he has a degree in computer science and modern graphic design.
“I am just looking for a job, period,” Holland said Thursday.
He said he has been to about four job fairs since May and has had many commission jobs in sales, but wants to find a stable job.
“I’ve had a lot of commission jobs, but no one wants to buy insurance or cable, or already has them, so those type of jobs are a big setback,” he said.
Jennifer Reckley, job training specialist for the Allegany County Human Resource and Development Commission, said job fairs are very helpful for both employers and those looking for jobs.
“Job fairs are very helpful and there has been a very high outcome at every one we’ve been to,” she said. “Everyone is looking for jobs and even on ‘bad’ days we’ve had fairly large turnouts. Today we’ve had at least 40 people take an application to fill out.”
Reckley said she encourages anyone looking for a job to go to job fairs.
“I know, for us, we’re going to go right back to the office, sort out the applications and send them to the manager,” she said. “So the process goes much faster for these applicants.”
Jim Roburtson, training director for the Joint Apprenticeship & Training Committee for the Electrical Industry, said the table for the Western Maryland Building Trades was very busy at this job fair.
“We have probably had 50 to 60 plus people stop by and about 25 percent of those were females,” he said. “Whether they’re all actually interested in pursuing this career, I don’t know, but it is encouraging to see.”
Roburtson said the building trades have done many job fairs and encourages people to go to job fairs.
“Job fairs are not necessarily only for those unemployed, but it’s also for those who may be looking to upgrade,” he said. “Some people come out and find they have the capabilities for a job they didn’t know they qualified for. It’s also a way for people to meet vendors and see where the jobs are in the county.”
Jack Wilson, business manager for the Plumers & Steamfitters Local 489, said job fairs are becoming more and more important for people to get in touch with others who may have the possibility of giving them an opportunity for employment.
“The economy has really bottomed out, expecially in this area, and it’s really driving people to look at careers in this type of field,” he said. “Last year many people would walk past us on their way to look at more white-collar types of jobs, but this year we have seen a lot of interest. And it’s great, my advice to people is to explore all possibilities, especially now.”
The job fair took place at the job center, 138 Baltimore St., on Thursday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Twelve local employers were represented and 215 people attended.
Contact Tess Hill at thill@times-news.com.
