Miss-Delectable
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http://www.reflector.com/local/content/news/stories/2005/08/26/20050826GDRjoblink.html
WINTERVILLE – Neal Ahearn's rough-hewn hands have spent much of their adult life building calluses.
And furniture.
And other things from wood, too.
At one job, his hands shipped and received.
At another, they painted.
At the most recent job, they washed dishes, bused tables, mopped floors, vacuumed and cleaned.
"I have such a long list of things I've done," he said.
But for the past year, his industrious hands have been mostly silent, except for all the talking they do.
Ahearn's deaf – and out of work. He communicates through sign language and some lip reading.
The 47-year-old Greenville resident participated in the Pitt County JobLink Career Center's third annual job drive on Thursday at the JobLink site in Winterville. Nicole Nicholas, 27, lead interpreter for the deaf and hard of hearing for Pitt Community College, accompanied Ahearn to the event.
The center, a partnership between Pitt Community College and the North Carolina Commission on Workforce Development, seeks to link area job seekers with Pitt County employers. Center director A.J. Tyson Jr. expected representatives from 17 area companies to interview some 330 pre-qualified potential employees during the event.
That's down from 2004 when 412 job seekers were scheduled for interviews with 10 employers. More than 200 people were hired that day, Tyson said.
"There are people always looking for jobs," Tyson said. "Some people are looking for their first jobs, some have been in companies that downsized and some just want a change or something better than they now have."
Tyson expects the job market to remain stable in the coming years, particularly due to retiring baby boomers. Jobs may be plentiful in medical care, transportation and retail, he said.
About 11:30 a.m., Ahearn and Nicholas met with Jackie Schulz, branch manager for Greenville business Action Staffing Group Inc. Action places employees in clerical and light-industrial positions for the 25 companies in and around Pitt County it represents.
From 9 a.m. until noon, Thursday, Schulz interviewed job-seekers every 15 minutes. She was unable to hire Ahearn because he'd requested a part-time position to augment his Social Security. She had only full-time openings, but urged him to contact her weekly.
"It would be nice to help everyone, but we don't see many part-time positions," said Schulz, 43.
Schulz worked for Action from 1995-2000, then returned to the company eight months ago. She's seeing more job seekers now than in her previous five years with Action, she said.
"In this area, we have seen companies come and go, and we've had hundreds of employees let go," she explained. "It's been a difficult time for this area."
Earlier Thursday, Greenville resident Andrea Butler, 34, waited for her interviews with Adecco and Access Construction & Steel Detail. She was seeking office work, she said.
Butler prepares tax returns for H & R Block during the four-month tax season, but needed primary employment to tide her over the rest of the year, she said. She hoped her interviews would result in job offers.
"This (JobLink) is like a one-stop shop for looking for jobs," she said. "There is a multitude of information here."
Sitting in the same room with Butler, Winterville resident Christopher Boyd was slightly less optimistic about his employment chances.
In June, the 34-year-old was discharged from the United States Navy for medical reasons, he said. He'd reported for duty just two months before. Now he was seeking an administrative assistant's position with Access Construction & Steel Detail.
Boyd joined the Navy because, as he said, "I needed an employment change." He'd been working the previous three years as a part-time custodian for Pitt County Schools. Boyd has had four job interviews in the two months since he left the Navy, but so far no job offer.
As he contemplated his upcoming interview, Boyd voiced the thespian-like mantra he's been using to cope with his unemployment anxiety.
"When I think about the way that gas is going through the roof ... hopefully, I can get a job," he said. "When I think about the personal things I want to buy ... hopefully, I can get a job. When I think of the things I want to buy for my family ... hopefully, I can get a job."
Ahearn's hoping for the same, but the previous year has drained his enthusiasm.
"I've been looking and looking, but it's been very bad and so slow for me," he said through Nicholas. "Greenville's very small, and there are too many restaurants."
Ahearn's wasn't thrilled with his last job, coincidentally in a local restaurant. After five months "working hard and sweating, I mean sweating," the company offered Ahearn a 25 cents per hour raise, he said. He asked for more. The company refused. He quit.
"It wasn't fair to me," Ahearn contended. "It's kind of like trying to cheat the deaf. It hurt my feelings."
In the meantime, Ahearn will continue to look. He's married with kids, and his $800 a month Social Security Insurance only goes so far, he said.
"I'm frustrated with my situation. It's a tough life, and I need the money for my children," he said.
WINTERVILLE – Neal Ahearn's rough-hewn hands have spent much of their adult life building calluses.
And furniture.
And other things from wood, too.
At one job, his hands shipped and received.
At another, they painted.
At the most recent job, they washed dishes, bused tables, mopped floors, vacuumed and cleaned.
"I have such a long list of things I've done," he said.
But for the past year, his industrious hands have been mostly silent, except for all the talking they do.
Ahearn's deaf – and out of work. He communicates through sign language and some lip reading.
The 47-year-old Greenville resident participated in the Pitt County JobLink Career Center's third annual job drive on Thursday at the JobLink site in Winterville. Nicole Nicholas, 27, lead interpreter for the deaf and hard of hearing for Pitt Community College, accompanied Ahearn to the event.
The center, a partnership between Pitt Community College and the North Carolina Commission on Workforce Development, seeks to link area job seekers with Pitt County employers. Center director A.J. Tyson Jr. expected representatives from 17 area companies to interview some 330 pre-qualified potential employees during the event.
That's down from 2004 when 412 job seekers were scheduled for interviews with 10 employers. More than 200 people were hired that day, Tyson said.
"There are people always looking for jobs," Tyson said. "Some people are looking for their first jobs, some have been in companies that downsized and some just want a change or something better than they now have."
Tyson expects the job market to remain stable in the coming years, particularly due to retiring baby boomers. Jobs may be plentiful in medical care, transportation and retail, he said.
About 11:30 a.m., Ahearn and Nicholas met with Jackie Schulz, branch manager for Greenville business Action Staffing Group Inc. Action places employees in clerical and light-industrial positions for the 25 companies in and around Pitt County it represents.
From 9 a.m. until noon, Thursday, Schulz interviewed job-seekers every 15 minutes. She was unable to hire Ahearn because he'd requested a part-time position to augment his Social Security. She had only full-time openings, but urged him to contact her weekly.
"It would be nice to help everyone, but we don't see many part-time positions," said Schulz, 43.
Schulz worked for Action from 1995-2000, then returned to the company eight months ago. She's seeing more job seekers now than in her previous five years with Action, she said.
"In this area, we have seen companies come and go, and we've had hundreds of employees let go," she explained. "It's been a difficult time for this area."
Earlier Thursday, Greenville resident Andrea Butler, 34, waited for her interviews with Adecco and Access Construction & Steel Detail. She was seeking office work, she said.
Butler prepares tax returns for H & R Block during the four-month tax season, but needed primary employment to tide her over the rest of the year, she said. She hoped her interviews would result in job offers.
"This (JobLink) is like a one-stop shop for looking for jobs," she said. "There is a multitude of information here."
Sitting in the same room with Butler, Winterville resident Christopher Boyd was slightly less optimistic about his employment chances.
In June, the 34-year-old was discharged from the United States Navy for medical reasons, he said. He'd reported for duty just two months before. Now he was seeking an administrative assistant's position with Access Construction & Steel Detail.
Boyd joined the Navy because, as he said, "I needed an employment change." He'd been working the previous three years as a part-time custodian for Pitt County Schools. Boyd has had four job interviews in the two months since he left the Navy, but so far no job offer.
As he contemplated his upcoming interview, Boyd voiced the thespian-like mantra he's been using to cope with his unemployment anxiety.
"When I think about the way that gas is going through the roof ... hopefully, I can get a job," he said. "When I think about the personal things I want to buy ... hopefully, I can get a job. When I think of the things I want to buy for my family ... hopefully, I can get a job."
Ahearn's hoping for the same, but the previous year has drained his enthusiasm.
"I've been looking and looking, but it's been very bad and so slow for me," he said through Nicholas. "Greenville's very small, and there are too many restaurants."
Ahearn's wasn't thrilled with his last job, coincidentally in a local restaurant. After five months "working hard and sweating, I mean sweating," the company offered Ahearn a 25 cents per hour raise, he said. He asked for more. The company refused. He quit.
"It wasn't fair to me," Ahearn contended. "It's kind of like trying to cheat the deaf. It hurt my feelings."
In the meantime, Ahearn will continue to look. He's married with kids, and his $800 a month Social Security Insurance only goes so far, he said.
"I'm frustrated with my situation. It's a tough life, and I need the money for my children," he said.