NEWARK, N.J., March 30, 2016 – New Jersey’s third annual Airport & Retail/Hospitality Job Fair attracted approximately 1,000 jobseekers today, as the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the Retail, Hospitality and Tourism Talent Network linked people to careers available with companies in and around Newark Liberty International Airport.

The event, held at the Ramada Plaza Hotel, was co-sponsored by NY/NJ Port Authority and the Council for Airport Opportunities and was organized with the Northern New Jersey One-Stop Career Centers. More than 30 employers conducted interviews and collected resumes from job-seekers. Employers included security firms, hotels, restaurants, retail chains, technical firms and terminal companies.

New Jersey businesses involved in leisure, hospitality and retail trade employed more than 800,000 workers in 2014, which amounted to nearly 25 percent of all private sector workers in the state. That same year, the state generated more than $45 billion in tourism demand. These latest available statistics underscore why Retail, Hospitality and Tourism was identified by the state Department of Labor as one of seven industry clusters in which the state must invest workforce development programs.

“Our Retail, Hospitality and Tourism Talent Network gives employers in that sector the opportunity to identify the skills, education and training they require of their workers for educational and training institutions to best prepare our workforce for successful careers,” said Labor Commissioner Harold J. Wirths. “This job fair has been successful each year because it connects workers to one of the state’s most vital industries.”

The leadership of the Retail, Hospitality and Tourism Talent Network is shared between Fairleigh Dickinson University in North Jersey and the Richard Stockton College in South Jersey because of the extensive programs each institution offers in hospitality and tourism management. Most jobseekers who attended today’s fair were pre-registered and given the opportunity to participate in a job-readiness training workshop before the job fair, as well as apply directly for retail and hospitality positions within and surrounding the airport.

“We will be hosting job readiness training sessions throughout the day. Jobseekers who attended the customer service workshop received a gold star lapel pin to wear to the career fair, identifying themselves to employers that they completed the training,” said Sandra Bleckman, Director of Retail, Hospitality and Tourism Talent Network at Fairleigh Dickinson University. “The goal of the job fair is to prepare jobseekers for the workforce and help them obtain full-time jobs.”

The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development created Talent Networks to focus on the specific needs of key industries that employ more than two-thirds of New Jersey workers and pay more than two-thirds of wages earned annually. Talent Networks work to help current jobseekers develop relevant skills that lead to job opportunities. The Talent Networks also help employers find qualified employees and ensure that workers have access to training and educational opportunities that lead to the jobs of the future.

The other six Talent Networks are: Technology; Health Care; Transportation, Logistics, and Distribution; Life Sciences; Advanced Manufacturing; and Financial Services.

For more information about New Jersey’s Talent Networks visit: http://careerconnections.nj.gov/careerconnections/partners/talent/talent_networks.shtml.

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