CareerLink to host second chance hiring event
Jul. 10—Pennsylvania CareerLink Lackawanna County hopes a second-chance hiring event will help former prisoners find work and employers fill gaps in their organizations.
The event scheduled for July 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Scranton CareerLink office, 135 Franklin Ave., will feature guest speakers from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry and Lackawanna Pro Bono Inc. who will discuss work opportunity tax credits, federal bonding, pardons and expungements, and other opportunities.
Several second-chance employers will discuss available positions, conduct interviews and accept resumes.
"With the shortage in the workforce, more employers are willing to give people an extra chance or opportunity because they have positions to fill," said Cathy Gerard, site administrator for PA CareerLink Lackawanna County. "Depending on why they were incarcerated, they might be able to hire them."
Gerard added several training providers will be available to help retrain workers who have been incarcerated.
"They don't always have the current skill sets for the workforce," she said.
Teri Ooms, president and CEO of the Northeast Pennsylvania-based Institute for Public Policy and Economic Development, stressed the importance of educational programs for people with criminal histories and employers looking to hire new workers.
"It's very needed because we have a large population in our area that has been incarcerated or charged with misdemeanors or felonies," Ooms said. "It's not a roadblock to employment and we're trying to create awareness on the employer side that there are things like the federal bonding program and tax credits for hiring individuals with a felony or misdemeanor background. The more we can let people know there is opportunity, it reduces recidivism."
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