Beaches Job Fair Attracts Hundreds

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, FL -- They arrived early and kept on coming, with handshakes, smiles and resumes to pass around.

More than two hundred job seekers showed up at the Beaches Emergency Assistance Ministry job fair in Jacksonville Beach.

There were insurance companies, OSHA, the City Of Jacksonville Beach, WorkSource and more lined up behind tables to meet and greet prospective employees.

Jorge Gutierrez is a recruiter with WorkSource. His job is to find the right person to match openings in a number of companies.

"There are an awful lot of people out there looking for work from all segments of the economy," said Gutierrez.

Drew Chase is one of those job seekers.

"It's tough. So far nothing has shown up but I'll just keep plugging away!"

Chase says he's seen companies taking advantage of this employers market.

"People that know their value aren't getting the interviews because they're asking for market value and they're (the employers are) wanting to go with the cheapest employee is something that I've run across."

But Chase knows perseverance is the key.

"You 'gotta go after it! --Keep going and don't give up!"

It's a message Jorge Gutierrez tells dozens of prospective employees each day.

"There's a lot of need for what we do and for me, personally, it gives me a lot of gratification to do what we do."

For a list of job openings for the City of Jax Beach, click here.

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