Job Fairs Mark Holiday Shopping Season
SUNRISE, Fla. (CBSMiami.com) – It's a sign of the approaching Holiday Shopping Season: A Holiday Hiring Fair at Sawgrass Mills brought out some pretty good crowds Tuesday.
But like so many other local job fairs, there were long lines, lots of paperwork, but few solid offers.
"It's very hard to find work, there's so much competition, so many people looking," said Ryan Sparkman of Coconut Creek.
Some two dozen retailers hung out their help wanted signs for what could be hundreds of holiday jobs. Victoria's Secret is looking for about 100 temps to get ready for the start of holiday shopping.
Robyn Albaum of Cache Clothing said it's a great time to be looking for about 20 new hires.
"There so many people with great credentials, it's just incredible," Albaum said. "We're excited to be able to bring all the new people onboard."
But there were almost no "actual hires" and veteran job seekers said they are not surprised they spent so much time in line and filling out paperwork and not actually getting back to work.
"You go to these fairs and speak with the companies and leave resumes and I hear nothing back," said Shantue Lewis, a single mother of three. "Maybe this time will be different. It's really hard."
For Sparkman, all he could do was sigh at the end of the day,
"Nothing yet, but I'm hoping this can lead to something, meet the right people; say the right thing. I'm off to apply online now," Sparkman said.
Employers said potential new hires need to know the process could take several weeks and possibly several more interviews.
Holiday hiring locally is forecast to remain as tight as last year, with the competition for new openings expected to be tougher than ever.
