[email protected] in Yuma County has one goal: to connect employers and job seekers. It works with companies that are trying to find workers and with unemployed workers needing jobs.
The agency works with companies in various ways. It helps businesses find, train and keep the right people, at no cost to the company. It offers customized recruitment services, employee development programs and business support resources.
HELPING TO FILL POSITIONS
To help businesses fill positions, [email protected] will post vacancies, called job orders. After the employer creates an account on the Arizona Job Connection website, the job order is entered into the system. The job is then distributed through email to more than 100 recipients.
The job is also posted on the Career Center Job Boards at several sites and social media. Job seekers can view the job orders at three Yuma locations: One Stop Career Center, 3826 W. 16th St., 928-29-0990; Yuma Youth Career Center, 300 S. 13th Ave., 928-783-9347; and [email protected], 1800 E. Palo Verde St., 928-247-8740.
Jobs are also posted on Facebook, where the Yuma County agency’s 7,341 followers can see the opening. The local agency is happy to brag that it has the most Facebook followers among all the [email protected] agencies in the state.
The agency can refer job seekers who qualify for a vacancy to help employers identify workers who have gone through the program. Applicants are pre-screened by an [email protected] representative. While a job referral indicates the job seeker has the agency’s “stamp of approval,” it doesn’t mean the job seeker has submitted an application. Therefore, the job seeker must still apply for the position.
Recruitment services include customized hiring events, which usually draw many applicants. Last year, a hiring event for Piana Nonwovens drew more than 1,500 applicants for 35 positions. Martech netted 375 applications for 20 positions, S&A Industries received 350 applications for 15 positions; Almark Foods received 465 applications for 75 positions; Datepac got more than 1,500 applications for 1,216 positions; and Dole netted 169 applications for more than 30 positions.
The agency is a partner in the largest hiring event in the county, the annual Yuma Community Job and Education Fair, which last year drew more than 115 vendors and 1,545 job seekers. Employers conducted 224 on-the-spot interviews, which resulted in 83 onsite hires.
Unfortunately, this year’s fair, which would have been held this month, has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But that hasn’t stopped the agency from holding virtual hiring events. The organization prefers to use Zoom videoconferencing because it allows for on-the-spot interviews to be conducted in breakout rooms.
The agency has also held Facebook Live Q&A sessions and workshops during the pandemic.
INTERNSHIPS, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING
[email protected] offers employee development programs, including the Work Experiences internship program, commonly called WEXs. The agency covers the intern’s salary for up to 15 weeks, with funds from the U.S. Department of Labor.
The program enables workers to gain work experience, occupational skills and exposure to the working world. It also helps participants acquire the personal attributes, knowledge and skills needed to obtain a job and advance in employment. The program provides participants with the opportunities for career exploration and skill development.
Employers can also take advantage of the on-the-job training program, with the agency partially paying for the worker’s salary. The overall objective for these programs is for participants to obtain new skills and work experience.
BUSINESS SUPPORT RESOURCES
[email protected] also offers other business support resources, such as labor market insight, tax credits and incentives and rapid response services. Labor market insights can help a company make sense of the changing labor landscape with data that includes industry trends and occupational outlook surveys, labor law compliance updates and employment insurance information.
Tax credit incentives are available to Arizona companies that hire targeted employee groups or provide specialties training and services, such as hiring veterans and the disabled or operating within an Enterprise Zone.
FACING LAYOFF AND CLOSURE
The rapid response service is for businesses that anticipate layoffs or closure. The agency provides immediate assistance to the affected company and workers. Services are customized to each situation and the company’s needs, and most services are provided at no cost to the employer.
Some of the services for affected employees include career counseling, job search assistance, resume preparation assistance, interview skills workshops, local labor market information, unemployment insurance, information about education and training, and more.
For job seekers, [email protected] offers a career readiness program that equips them with the basic skills that employers value. The agency notes that that goal is to remove barriers that are keeping job seekers on the sidelines and give them a realistic path to the workforce.
On the other hand, by looking at applicants with an Arizona Career Readiness Credential, employers are able to better connect to qualified candidates who are well-prepared for career success, according to the agency.
To earn the credential, a job seeker must take four steps: initial skills review, a career readiness self-directed online course, an employability skills course, either self-directed or as a series of workshops, and proctored assessments.
Businesses wishing more information may contact Moises Pimentel, business services consultant, at [email protected] or 928-329-0990 ext. 7711.
In addition, the South County Business Resource Center, located at 1453 N. Main St., Suite 5, in San Luis, Arizona, is available to help both businesses and job seekers. For more information, contact Mariana Martinez, engagement liaison, at [email protected] or 928-329-0990 ext. 1613.
