Job Fairs in Martinsville and Danville Help 177 People Find Work
December 22, 2010
Two recent job fairs in Martinsville and Danville helped 177 people find work, according to two business services managers from the Danville-Pittsylvania County and Martinsville-Henry County chambers of commerce.
Source: Martinsville Bulletin
Reference: http://www.martinsvillebulletin.com/
Job fairs yielding results
Friday, December 24, 2010
Two recent job fairs in Martinsville and Danville helped 177 people find work, according to two business services managers from the Danville-Pittsylvania County and Martinsville-Henry County chambers of commerce.
The business services managers reported to the West Piedmont Workforce Investment Board (WPWIB) this week that the board’s funding for the job fairs created ways for employers to fill their vacancies. The board spent nearly $5,000 on each job fair for advertising, space rental fees and other facility-related expenses and refreshments.
In Henry County-Martinsville, the business services manager is Linda Plaster. In Pittsylvania County-Danville, it is Laura Neal.
Plaster and Neal said to the best of their knowledge, only a few of the hires were seasonal. However, Neal said a recent company-specific targeted recruitment event for My Twinn resulted in 75 additional people in the Danville region getting seasonal work over the holidays.
John Parkinson, a WPWIB member and president/CEO of Drake Extrusion in Henry County, said his company hired several people from the Martinsville job fair.
“It brought out people who were serious� about employment, he said.
In Martinsville, the job fair was Oct. 21 at Liberty Fair Mall with 27 employers participating and 680 job seekers in attendance. As of Dec. 20, Plaster reported 120 people were hired by participating employers.
Danville’s job fair was held Sept. 22 at the Institute for Advanced Learning & Research with 24 employers and 1,148 job seekers in attendance. As of Dec. 20, Neal reported in Danville that 57 people were hired by participating employers.
Plaster and Neal said they will continue to monitor the job fair results as some of the employers still are screening and interviewing applicants from the fairs.
“We could not have asked for a better outcome,� said WPWIB One Stop Systems Oversight Manager Lucius Chandler.
The WPWIB funds and monitors the region’s five Virginia Workforce Centers in its service region of Danville and Martinsville and counties of Henry, Patrick and Pittsylvania.
Effective July 1, the Virginia Workforce Centers in Danville and Henry County-Martinsville, operated by Pittsylvania County Community Action (PCCA), partnered with the chambers to help deliver services.
People who want help with their job searches may contact Chandler at 634-3600 or (434) 773-3038 at the centers in Martinsville or Danville, respectively.
Employers may get work force recruitment help by contacting Plaster at the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber, 632-6401, or Neal at the Danville-Pittsylvania County Chamber, (434) 836-6990.
