NEIU Diversity Job Fair: Where the Work Almost is

Jewel, Youth Outreach Services, Illinois Department of Children & Family Services, U.S. Department of Labor, and Sun-times Media were just a few of the employment and internship opportunities available to students at the Fall 2011 Diversity Community Job Fair. In an age where full and part-time positions are hard to come by, the job fair was a welcomed addition to student and community members, as many could tell by the long line leading from Alumni Hall to the entrance of the Student Union. According to a report entitled “The Employment Situation- September 2011” released on October 7th, 2011 from the U.S. Department of Labor’s, Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment figures have held fairly steady at 9.1 percent. “The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) rose to 9.3 million in September. These individuals were working part-time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.” According to this same report, the facts were broken down by race and gender and provided more of a bleak outlook for job seekers. “Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (8.8 percent), adult women (8.1 percent), teenagers (24.6 percent), whites (8.0 percent), blacks (16.0 percent), and Hispanics (11.3 percent) showed little or no change in September. The jobless rate for Asians was 7.8 percent.” This event, sponsored by the Albany Park Community Center, The Korean American Chamber of Commerce, The NEIU Office of Career Services, The Peterson Pulaski Business Industrial Council, and the Pulaski Elston Business Associates Inc., could only have been better if all employers conducted on the spot interviews. “Not everyone is hiring and most are only accepting applications online” one job seeker said.