The Workforce Center of Will County celebrated Monday the opening of its new building in Joliet where residents looking for new jobs or opportunities to boost their skills will receive support.
The Workforce Center, 1300 Copperfield Ave., recently moved from a 12,000-square-foot space to a 16,000-square-foot floor in the same county-owned building as the Will County Veterans Assistance Commission.
“This new location not only offers an expanded space for staff and events, but is in a centralized location that makes it easier for residents and employers throughout the county to access these services,” said Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant.
Elizabeth Gonzalez, the chair of the county’s Workforce Investment Board, said the center provides a partnership between employers and job seekers.
“Our goal has always been simple — to connect people to opportunity,” she said. “Whether it’s job seekers to build skills, supporting employers in finding talent or strengthening our local economy, this center allows us to do that work even better.”
The center serves between 600 and 1,000 people per month, not including outside events it hosts such as job fairs, said Caroline Portlock, director of the Workforce Investment Board.
Will County has about a 4% unemployment rate, but the unemployment rate for certain demographics, such as individuals with disabilities or African American men, is much higher, Portlock said.
“While we may be as a county what they would consider just above full employment, we truly have an opportunity to meet those untapped groups and serve those who have more barriers to employment,” she said.
The federally-funded Workforce Center can help residents improve the skills they need to access jobs, she said. The center offers career counseling, resume preparation assistance, advise for interviewing, classes to learn computers programs such as Microsoft Excel or Word and help creating a LinkedIn profile, Portlock said.
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The center’s workers can help polish resumes for job seekers, especially if there’s a gap in employment, so they can put their best foot forward, she said.
The services are designed to help all county residents, and the center tries to especially reach out to the unemployed, underemployed, individuals with disabilities, veterans and their families, and residents who may be trying to reenter the workforce after being incarcerated or going through the criminal justice system, said Michelle Stiff, the director of the county’s workforce services division.
“That’s why I’m so passionate about what I’m doing here,” Stiff said. “I think it can change their lives.”
Even if residents were not in jail, they may still have a conviction on their record that makes it harder to get a job, she said. Helping residents gain meaningful employment can help reduce recidivism, she said.
Being in the same building as the Veterans Assistance Commission and near the Hines VA Joliet Community Based Outpatient Clinic is a chance to reach another targeted demographic.
The Workforce Center partners with several Will County businesses looking for workers in the fields of transportation, distribution and logistics, the healthcare and manufacturing sectors, information technology and administrative services, Stiff said.
Qualified individuals can also receive a scholarship toward tuition for a certification that can lead to a better job, Stiff said.
The center also partners with agencies such as the Illinois Department of Employment Security, Illinois Department of Human Services and the Joliet Junior College department of adult education and literacy, and department of career and technical education, among others.
Its Pathways to Professions Career Expo last month in Romeoville saw more than 800 students from 17 area high schools and another 300 job seekers from the general public gain information to potential employers, Portlock said.
The center posts podcasts and career guidance online for residents who can’t get to the Joliet center. There are also 15 job assistance kiosks placed throughout Will County for residents to search for jobs, explore training opportunities or schedule one-on-one time to meet with a staff member to review resumes or answer questions.
The center has served more than 2,400 unique clients in the last four years.
“This is a hand up,” Portlock said. “What we are doing is helping someone get to a career pathway that they will stay in and thrive in versus a job they may have for the interim. Ensuring that people are able to get to where they want to be and meeting them where they are and providing those services and steps along the way is one of the really cool things about the program.”
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter.