BELLEFONTE — Are you looking for a new job or a great employee? PA CareerLink offers free resources and services to help job seekers and employers achieve these goals.
PA CareerLink serves all members of the community and has specific program services available for employers, in-school youth, out-of-school young adults, veterans, persons with disabilities and dislocated workers.
The organization’s spring and fall job fairs create opportunities for job seekers and employers to meet in person to discuss available job openings. The next job fair will feature 32 employers and will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, April 14, at Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology, 540 N. Harrison Road, Pleasant Gap. The doors open to U.S. military veterans at 9:30 a.m.
Throughout the year, PA CareerLink hosts recruitment events for individual employers at the PA CareerLink Centre County office, 240 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, at no cost.
A core component of the PA CareerLink employment services is a website launched by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry in 2012 that lists approximately 200,000 job openings. PA CareerLink staff are available to assist employers and job seekers with creating accounts at JobGateway.pa.gov. Once enrolled, job seekers can apply for jobs through the website. There is no cost for employers to post job listings and search the resume database for prospective employees.
Employers are welcome to meet with members of the Business Services Team to learn about available services, including job listings, recruitment assistance, interviewing space, job application screening, on-the-job training reimbursement, and information on the labor market, work opportunity tax credits and the federal bonding program.
PA CareerLink has limited on-the-job training funds to assist qualified adults and youth to obtain new skills that require hands-on learning. This program is designed to encourage employers to hire promising candidates who may not have the desired level of experience or skills, or have been unemployed for a long time. Employers will be reimbursed 50 percent of the employee’s wages during the training period, and will retain the individual as a permanent employee upon successful completion of the training program.
Young adults under the age of 25 may qualify for eight-week paid work experiences, similar to internships, at no cost to the employers. This program allows young adults to obtain valuable work experience. A similar program for high school youth offers summer work experiences and guidance about employment skills.
One-on-one career planning is available with staff workforce specialists by appointment. They address individual customer needs, such as overcoming barriers to employment or how to transition into a new career, and can refer customers to other agencies as needed. Additionally, limited funding is available for short-term post-secondary training in high priority occupations for candidates who qualify.
Job seekers can use the computers in the career resource area to fill out job applications, create resumes and cover letters, and check online job postings. Staff are available to assist customers and answer questions.
The PA CareerLink priority phone line to the Unemployment Compensation Call Center offers short wait times for callers filing for benefits or seeking information.
Job seekers can register to attend free classes on employment topics, such as interviewing, resumes and cover letters, customer service skills, government jobs, personal finances topics and an introduction to Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
Of special interest in April are the new Customer Service 101 class Tuesday, April 26, a “Prepare for the Job Fair” workshop Tuesday, April 12, and “Applying for Jobs at Penn State” Friday, April 22. Registration is required for these sessions.
For more information, call (814) 548-7587 or visit PA CareerLink offices from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays and 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. all other weekdays.
