Temple hosts Philadelphia's largest annual employment fair
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - From signing bonuses to benefits, companies like Gateway Community Action Partnership are pulling out all the stops to help attract new employees at Temple University's Neighborhood Job Fair.
"We have tuition reimbursement," Jinnea Terrell of Gateway Community Action Partnership said.
Jinnea Terrell is the assistant director of operations at Gateway which provides education and resources to underserved families like her own.
"I was on welfare, and I was receiving support and services like many families are receiving today," Terrell said.
Terrell says she moved up within the company and is even going for her Ph.D.
It's an opportunity she hopes to also provide others.
"For me, I know if it can happen for me, it can happen for someone else," Terrell said.
But since the pandemic, many employers reveal finding candidates hasn't been easy.
One of the reasons experts say is that the current labor market has shifted leading employers to compete with remote job opportunities.
"A lot of online opportunities," job candidate Dashek Boone said. "I think COVID really impacted the way the world looks at employment as a whole."
This job fair is open to anyone within the community, but organizers say when this was first started 16 years ago their main focus was on providing opportunities to people of color and minority communities.
"Even though it's a really diverse job fair that welcomes everyone, we are happy that it is a big appeal among people of color," Temple University Director of Community Outreach and Hiring Michael Robinson said.
Nearly 80 employers attended hoping to find candidates that reflect our diverse communities.
