CARNEY’S POINT, N.J., April 9, 2014 – New Jersey’s Health Care Industry Week continued today, with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and its New Jersey Health Care Talent Network joining in an industry career fair that also offered networking opportunities, free health screenings and panel discussions at the Salem Community College.

The event marked the third day of Health Care Industry Week activities kicked off on Monday at Rutgers University in Piscataway by the New Jersey Health Care Talent Network, which was established through a grant issued to Rutgers by the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development (LWD). Health Care Industry Week is an annual event designed to highlight employment opportunities within the state’s growing health care field by displaying resources available for job-seekers, showcasing the latest health care technology and identifying career training possibilities.

“New Jersey’s expanding health care industry is a key component to the state’s economic growth and future prosperity,” said LWD Commissioner Harold J. Wirths. “As one of the priority industry sectors identified by our labor analysts, my department created the Health Care Talent Network to build strong connections with employers to identify the skills, education and training they need from prospective employees so that our education and training institutions can train and prepare our workforce for those emerging jobs.”

The Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations operates the New Jersey Health Care Talent Network, which serves as a comprehensive resource for employers, job-seekers, the education community and the workforce development system. The Health Care Talent Network is one of seven Talent Networks created by LWD to focus on industry clusters that are driving the state’s economy.

More than two-thirds of New Jersey workers are employed in the seven industry clusters, which account for more than two-thirds of wages paid in New Jersey. The other six Talent Network industries are: Transportation, Logistics and Distribution; Life Sciences; Advanced Manufacturing; Financial Services; Technology and Entrepreneurship; and Retail, Hospitality and Tourism.

Health Care Industry Week continues through Friday April 11, 2014. Activities include:

• April 10
  • Behavioral Health Awareness & Career Pathways Day at Brookdale Community College
  • The Heart of Care: A Conference for Direct Care Workers at Middlesex County College
  • Mental Health Career Day at Georgian Court University

Go to www.hctn-nj.org for a full schedule of Health Care Industry Week activities.

For more information about New Jersey’s Talent Networks:

Visit: http://careerconnections.nj.gov/careerconnections/partners/talent/talent_networks.shtml

Contact: Judy Formalarie, Senior Project Manager, Talent Networks

judith.formalarie@dol.state.nj.us or (609) 984-4178

Contact: Terrance Leverett, Senior Project Manager, Talent Networks

terrance.leverett@dol.state.nj.us or (609) 292-5750    

Catherine Starghill, Director of Workforce Field Services for the Department of Labor and
Workforce Development, took advantage of a health care screening offered at Salem
Community College during another event designed to highlight New Jersey’s Health Care
Industry Week.