Paulsen's job fair in Bloomington: A first

Paulsen's job fair in Bloomington: A first

BY Marc Ingber - Sun Newspapers

With unemployment numbers at near-record highs, it seems unlikely companies looking for employees would need to participate in a job fair.

But there are benefits for companies to meet potential employees face to face, Erik Paulsen said, rather than just combing through resumes. Paulsen, the Republican U.S. Third Congressional District representative from Eden Prairie, held a job fair Feb. 8 at Normandale Community College in Bloomington.

"This is the first time a job fair has been hosted by a congressional member in Minnesota," Paulsen said at the event. "We didn't know what to expect."

Despite snowy weather and harsh traveling conditions, turnout at the job fair was high. Visitors included Normandale students looking for career opportunities after college, as well as adults looking for work.

"We thought 'why don't we have a job fair?'" Paulsen said. "We all know someone who has been affected by the economy."

St. Paul resident Dave Zamora worked in the trucking industry until he was laid off in October. "I'm one of the millions looking for work," he said. "This is my first job fair."

Zamora visited several booths at the event, including Starkey Labs, Best Buy and Target. More than 50 employers had representatives at the job fair.

Zamora has the possibility of picking up shifts at his old job on an on-call basis, he said, but it wasn't an ideal situation. There was no guarantee he would work 40 hours per week.

He came to the job fair to see what other opportunities were out there. "It's helpful - at least I know more about looking for a job," he said. "I'm not desperate, but if I find something else I find suitable, I'm going."

One company looking for recruits at the fair was Coldwell Banker Burnet.

"Right now we have a huge need for sales associates," said branch vice president Lance Burwald. "We are hiring intensely for people who want to start a career in real estate."

He met a few people at the fair he plans to meet with again. The nice thing about the industry, he said, was that successful Realtors come from all walks of life. "It's a real level playing field," he said. "There is less people getting into the business, but we are looking for people who are qualified to do this."

Bloomington resident LeeAnna Pederson, a Normandale student, is looking for a job in the medical technology field. She was glad Normandale hosted the job fair, but wasn't sure if it would lead to a job.

"They kind of passed me over, looking like a student," she said. "They were more interested in people in business suits."

Another Normandale student, Kobina Taylor of Savage, has a job working at Macy's, but is looking into getting a second job. He also wanted to see what the job fair had to offer in terms of career opportunities.

"I'm not ready yet to go into my career, but I want to do something else before I get there," he said. "There's a good variety of stuff to look at. It's pretty helpful - hopefully it will lead somewhere."