Chicago Vet? Job Fairs This Week

Are you looking for a good job? Illinois is looking for a few good men -- and women. If you're a veteran looking for employment in the Chicago area, you're in luck this week. You've got not one, but two veterans-only job fairs to choose from:

• Salute Our Heroes Job Fair, 11-5, Wednesday (May 17, 2006) at the Navy Pier Grand Ballroom, 600 E. Grand Ave., Chicago. More info/pre-registration.
  
• Veterans Outreach Program Job Fair, 9-1, Thursday (May 18, 2006) at West Side Technical College, 2800 S. Western Ave., in Chicago. Info: (708) 371-9800

Click on 'Article Link' below tags for more details...

From the Suburban Chicago Herald News:

Slots for employers at Thursday's job fair are filling faster than ever, largely because of the spotlight thrown on veteran unemployment by the Daily Southtown and other papers in the Southtown's publishing group, said Jim Jazo, executive director of the Veterans Outreach Program. "Most people are wonderful in this country," he said. "All they needed was a little reminder from the media to step up and make it happen."

Veterans Outreach is sponsoring the job fair at West Side Technical Institute [on] Thursday. More than 2,000 veterans attended last year's fair. The response has been even greater this year, Jazo said. For the first time in the decade-plus he's been coordinating the fair, all the employer booths were filled a week before the event, he said.

The 65 booths will be manned by both blue-collar and white-collar companies, including FedEx, LaSalle Bank, five security firms and seven police departments.

A few details on Wednesday's Navy Pier job fair:

[S]ponsored by the New York Times and a host of veteran organizations, including the American Legion and USO. John Scully, a retired Army major general and the senior vice president of human resources at LaSalle Bank, said the job fair can be a good kick-start for veterans just returning from Iraq or older vets looking to scale the corporate ladder. "These people come back with managerial skills," he said. "They come back with skills in IT, in engineering. They know how to follow orders. They know how to lead people. They've got real strong backgrounds." ...

Returning veterans, however, must do a better job of showing how their military skills translate in the civilian world, Enelow said. That's why the Salute Our Heroes job fair not only will offer employer booths, but also seminars on writing resumes, succeeding in a job interview and starting your own business. "There is such a huge need in this market," said Enelow, who is speaking at the job fair. "They need to know how to show all they've done."

Don't forget to bring a photo ID, your discharge papers, and plenty of resumes. Good luck if you head out to either!


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