VIENNA, W.Va. — Jobs and Hope West Virginia hosted an Opportunity Expo at Grand Central Mall on Wednesday, connecting job seekers with employers ready to hire for fair-chance positions and with community resources aimed at eliminating barriers to employment.
Deb Harris, manager for the Jobs and Hope West Virginia program, said the expo encouraged job seekers in the region to apply for open positions on site.
Employers and vendors at the event included Kay Jewelers, the IUPAT Painters Union, other labor unions and Westbrook Health Services, along with other resource providers.
Harris said Jobs and Hope focuses on eliminating barriers to employment through community partners, including Westbrook Health Services, Goodwill, Marshall Health and the CORE program. Employers also received recovery-friendly workplace training on inclusive hiring practices, she said.
Jobs and Hope was established in 2019 as a legislatively funded statewide program serving all 55 West Virginia counties, Harris said. The program employs 25 transition agents who connect participants to local resources and refer them to training and education opportunities.
Harris distinguished between immediate employment and career employment. Immediate employment can meet short-term needs while participants build resumes and work history, she said, but the program’s end goal is career employment with retirement benefits, 401(k)s, insurance and opportunities for advancement.
“A lot of folks, especially in the recovery community, we see they just haven’t been educated on what career employment is, how important it is to think long term,” Harris said. “Career employment, we want them to set goals for that and to be thinking about insurance and retirement and being able to provide for themselves and their families.”
Harris said many attendees asked how the program could help them better themselves, often through training and education. A high school equivalency can lead to higher-paying jobs than no diploma, she said, while college education brings higher wages. She also pointed to the trades, noting unions are hiring with competitive wages.
Eric King, apprenticeship coordinator with the West Virginia Laborers’ Union, said the union recruits for work on roads and bridges, industrial plants, building construction, gas distribution and pipeline projects.
King said many people are unaware of union benefits, including retirement after 25 years and 50,000 hours with health care paid until Medicare eligibility. That structure allows workers who start young to retire in their mid-40s, he said.
King described the Laborers’ Union as a second-chance employer for people in recovery or with criminal histories.
“At the end of the day, the people that need the second chance, they end up being our best employees,” King said. “We can get anybody to work no matter their past.”
King said unions need workers and are working to explain what they offer and provide sustainable wages and benefits, including by attending expos and bringing resources directly to communities.
Harris said the event would be a success if even one person was hired, while also valuing networking between employers and resource providers to improve hiring practices and support current employees.
She said events like the expo create awareness and provide a safe space for people to ask questions, feel valued and connect face-to-face with organizations in their community.
Jobs and Hope plans to hold similar opportunity expos throughout the state, Harris said.
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