Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
LAYTON — Retired Lt. Col. Jill Montoya had never been to a job fair before.
Her 20 years as an active-duty National Guard member was her career, but a recent divorce had Montoya looking for a part-time job that could eventually become full time.
After looking online and in newspapers for job openings, Montoya heard about the Hero2Hired job fair.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity to be here in a military-only setting," she said. "It's more comfortable knowing that these guys have an idea of what my skill set is going to be so I don't have to explain what a lieutenant colonel is."
Other military members, veterans and their spouses met with potential employers Thursday at the job fair at the Davis Conference Center.
Due to limited space, only 61 vendors of the 160 companies that applied were selected, said Kim Watts, staff leader of Utah Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve.
"It's definitely a good pool to pull from," said Camryn Faiola, master officer with the Ogden Police Department, one of the vendors at the job fair. "We see a lot of people come home and not have jobs. So why not get out and show them what we have to offer and what they could do with us?"
Mark Harrison, support specialist with the Utah Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, said it's important for military members to find meaningful employment, especially when the unemployment rate for veterans tends to be higher than the national average.
I'm grateful for the opportunity to be here in a military-only setting. It's more comfortable knowing that these guys have an idea of what my skill set is going to be so I don't have to explain what a lieutenant colonel is.
–Lt. Col. Jill Montoya
In 2011, the national average of unemployed, post-2001 military veterans was 12.1 percent, compared with the 8.9 percent national average, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In Utah, the unemployment rate of post-2001 military veterans was estimated at 15 percent, Harrison said.
"Our first job fair that we did at the South Towne mall in November of 2011, we had over 1,400 job seekers show up," he said.
Since that 2011 job fair, the number of job seekers has steadily gone down, Harrison said, something he credits to the hiring success of the job fairs.
And some former job seekers are now attending the job fairs representing their new companies, he said.
"Success for us would be to be able to stop doing these job fairs because it would mean everyone had a job and life is good," Watts said. "Until then, we will continue to do this to support our veterans and servicemen."
Katie Larsen is a Deseret News intern and print journalism senior at Utah State University who graduates in December. Email: klarsen@deseretnews.com
