Fletcher holding job fair June 10 for oil workers

The local technical college that prepared many workers for the oilfield is trying to help them find work again in this tough job market.

Fletcher Technical Community College is hosting an industrial job fair Friday, June 10, for Bayou Region workers who have been laid off during the oil and gas downturn.

The fair is intended to unite the local labor force with industry from across the state looking for skilled work.

According to Vic Lafont, president of the South Louisiana Economic Council, companies from New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Lake Charles will be in attendance looking for workers. While he acknowledged his organization primarily focuses on local business’s

prosperity, Lafont said helping to keep local workers afloat is critical to the Bayou Region’s economy.

“We realize the current economic times that we’re facing today that we must continue to work for the members our business community, but that we must also serve the

citizens of our region faithfully,”

The SLEC and Louisiana Economic Development, which collaborated on the fair, are using technology to streamline the process.

Workers and companies can register for the job fair on bayouopportunity.com. They

can also create a profile on louisianajobconnection.com, where they can upload their résumé, view job openings across the state and have the website notify them when a job that matches their skillset is available.

LED Secretary Don Pierson said his organization hosted a similar job fair in Lafayette, which had “strong results” he is hoping to replicate at Fletcher.

According to an LED press release, the Lafayette event featured 36 companies and

1,800 job seekers. Company representatives made 72 job offers at the event with 266 additional interviews scheduled. Pierson did not know a specific number of job openings available at the Fletcher fair, saying it would be dependent on how many companies attend. As of Friday, 17 companies are registered to attend.

Pierson highlighted the $97 billion of announced projects in Lake Charles as well as refinery and chemical plant expansions along the river between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. He said while some of the jobs may be further from home than normal, they are still opportunities that can serve as a bridge until the oil economy rebounds.

“Our view of success is when we can match this great workforce, these great skillsets, to job opportunities in the community and build the economic fabric. That’s what truly economic development is,” he said.

The job fair takes place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. next Friday at Fletcher in Schriever. Prospective workers are asked to dress professionally and bring copies of their résumés. •