Career fair seeks to connect veterans with jobs

Career fair seeks to connect veterans with jobs

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LAYTON — Utah is among the states with the lowest unemployment rates in the nation at 3.1 percent compared to a national jobless rate of 4.1 percent, according to the state Department of Workforce Services. Those conditions have helped make the Beehive State a good place to look for work for nearly anyone, particularly military veterans.

Nearly 60 employers participated in the Hiring Utah’s Heroes Career Fair Tuesday at the Davis Conference Center in Layton. The fair was one of a series of events intended to assist veterans, active-duty military, members of the National Guard and Reserve, along with military spouses in finding information on veteran benefits, prospective job opportunities or to upgrade their current employment circumstances.

The event was organized by a coalition of state agencies, including the Utah Department of Veterans Affairs and the state Department of Workforce Services, explained Mark Harrison, employer support program specialist for the Utah National Guard.

"We formulated this coalition to help (them) find employment resources," he said. "We do three to four of these large employment and career events a year mostly along the Wasatch Front."

He noted some smaller job fairs are held in small and rural communities across the state. More than 60 employers with more than 1,500 combined job openings were available to job seekers for Tuesday's event, he said.

"We have a very large veteran-friendly community of employers," Harrison said. "A lot of these companies have some great career opportunities they can get into."

Launched in 2011, the veterans hiring events have been a positive way to help veterans reintegrate after their military service is completed, he said. The unemployment rate for veterans in Utah is 2.9 percent, he noted, making the state one of the best for former military and their families.

Other agencies that support the Hiring Utah’s Heroes events include the Utah Veterans and Military Employment Coalition, the Utah Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, the National Guard Employment Support Program, the Salt Lake Chamber, the Davis County Chamber of Commerce and Ogden-Weber Chambers of Commerce, the Department of Labor’s Veterans Employment and Training Service, among other local partners, he said.

For more information, contact Mark Harrison at 801-432-4536 or visit the Utah Department of Workforce Services website.

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