Staten Island's annual Autumn Job & Career Fair

From the Staten Island Advance: http://blog.silive.com/latest_news/print.html?entry=/2010/09/wear_a_smile_and_a_shoeshine_t.html

Published: Wednesday, September 08, 2010, 6:46 AM     Updated: Wednesday, September 08, 2010, 6:48 AM

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As the carefree days of summer slip into memory, job-seekers can refocus their hunt for employment at Staten Island's annual Autumn Job & Career Fair.

As many as 60 employers from the business and health-care sectors will gather Oct. 5 at South Beach Psychiatric Center for the event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

On-the-spot interviews will be conducted for openings ranging from entry-level to those requiring high skills.

The fair -- a joint effort of the state Labor Department's (DOL) Staten Island office and the Staten Island Job Service Employer Committee (JSEC) -- was started in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001, to help people who had lost work as a result of the terrorist attacks.

Last year, nearly 1,800 attended the free event and at least 200 came away with employment offers, said John Mastellone, a New York State DOL supervisor and the coordinator of the Staten Island JSEC.

"I think this is the big job event for the Island; everybody is together under one roof on the same day," he said.

With the economy still at a slow sputter -- in August, 8.4 percent of Staten Islanders were receiving unemployment benefits -- this year's fair should provide a much-needed boost for Islanders in quest of a regular paycheck, Mastellone said.

"We try to get as wide a variety of employers as possible, because people out of work range from laborers to people earning six figures," he said.

Already nursing homes, security firms, home-health agencies, car service companies, banks, insurance companies and other temp agencies will be attending, and more employers are still signing up.

In years past, the borough's major retailers also have had a presence to hire hands for seasonal, holiday work. In a sign the economy might be on the mend, some companies that did not have jobs available last year have again expressed interest in recruiting at this year's fair, he said.

Mastellone recommends attendees arrive dressed in interview attire, and that they bring at least 30 copies of their résumés.

Candidates also should have an idea of what type of work they will be seeking, and it would help to conduct research on the employers in attendance, and be prepared with questions: Among companies already signed up are Staten Island University Hospital, Time Warner Cable, H&R Block, Eger and Clove Lake nursing homes, MetLife, Richmond County Savings and Northfield banks, Mid Island Car Service, as well as Sottile Security and Pinpoint Investigations.

For more information, call 718-982-2560.