By Tamas Mondovics
Dozens of businesses from throughout Hillsborough County had a chance last month to welcome hundreds of residents seeking employment during a special South County job fair hosted by Hillsborough County Commissioner, Sandy Murman.
The free public event was held at the HCC SouthShore Campus, located at 551 24th Street, N.E. in Ruskin.
“With the challenges that we are all facing with the economy, the most important thing that we can do in County Government is to help our unemployed or under employed citizens to find jobs,” Murman said. According to county officials, the venue for the event was specifically chosen as there is no area that has been hit harder in Murman’s district than South County.
Businesses attending the event included a number of major government and private entities such as the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, County Fire Rescue, Hillsborough County Public Schools, Mosaic, Lowe’s and Home Depot just to name a few. Representing the Sheriff’s Office, Detective Elvira Hudgins talked about qualifications for law enforcement opportunities currently available, including the need for deputies, child protection investigators as well as communications dispatchers.
Lowe’s Regional Human Resources manager, Andrew Fullington, emphasized the company’s current need of employees ahead of the upcoming busy holiday season.
By emphasizing career of tenure and longevity, the Mosaic Fertilizer, LLC, a Florida-based subsidiary of the Mosaic Company, was promoting its need of general laborers at various plants located throughout the county.
While the presence of representation is a plus, some have expressed concern about the lack of opportunity for on-the-spot job interview and hiring.
“I really like the event and to see who is hiring, but I need a job now, and I was a little disappointed about being referred back to apply online. I am kind of old-school, I guess, and was hoping to accomplish a bit more in person,” said Ruskin resident, Leo Katwaro. “I could have applied for any of these jobs at home without coming to the job fair.”
For more information, call David Robinson at Tampa Bay Workforce Alliance at 930-7868 or Commissioner Murman’s office at 272-5470.
