Halifax job fair draws more than 2,000 attendees
The atmosphere inside a job fair in Halifax on Wednesday was electric as eager job seekers pushed through crowds and endured long lines at employers’ booths.
“We had 350 people in the first 20 minutes literally come into the service and we still had a lineup going down and around the building,” said Philip Cantrill, executive director of Job Junction Nova Scotia Works.
The job fair is a two-day event, with its first day seeing more than 2,000 people attend.
Attendees like Abishek Damodran and his friend Mohammed Saif were surprised to see so many people fill the room looking for jobs.
“We are looking for a part-time right now. We still don’t find a job and it’s been like four-to-five months that we are here. We thought it could be helpful but there is so much competition,” said Damodran.
Damodran said it has been extremely difficult finding a part-time position around the Halifax area and he hopes the job fair helps.
“We have dropped off our resume at a few places and they have given positive responses, so we’re hoping,” he said.
More than 100 employers set up booths at the job fair.
“Things are always changing, people are always changing and so we really wanted to be connected to them and see what we can offer to them and see what they can offer the forces as well,” said Roxxane Cyr, crews commander of the Canadian Armed Forces.
Some were also there to promote the types of jobs that exist within the industry.
“We have more than just sea-going positions. We have shore-based positions. We want people to understand that we do more than just go on vessels and explain what the opportunities are and how great it is to work with the Coast Guard,” said Scott Fisher of the Canadian Coast Guard.
Others also provided information on jobs that may not people be on people’s radars.
“Most people think it requires an enormous amount of education to get into Nova Scotia Health. Here we offer actually a handful of online courses to get you started and because the need is so great, we actually offer an opportunity that once you’re enrolled in this course you can actually be hired within Nova Scotia Health as soon as you’re enrolled,” said Cheryl Bennet with Nova Scotia Health’s Medical Device Reprocessing Department.
Saif said he was happy to have the opportunity.
“I think it’s a very good platform to connect with the employer because we don’t get the opportunity to connect with the employer directly,” he said.
However, there were others attending the event who did not find the job fair had positions that matched their qualifications.
“We came here thinking it was going to be a big job fest but we didn’t find it useful for us,” Christy Binoy and Isbel Sabal.
Binoy and Sabal said they are graduates of the management program and a lot of the positions available were not a fit for them.
“It seems like it’s more so for the health-care field so there’s not much opportunities for us,” Sabal.
The next job fair is going to be in the summer season.
For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Liberal MP says she's leaving politics over disrespectful dialogue, threats, misogyny
Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she won't run again in the next federal election, saying she has experienced misogyny, disrespectful dialogue in politics and threats to her life.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
Plane overshoots runway at airport in St. John's, N.L., no injuries reported
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada were in St. John's, N.L., Wednesday after a plane overshot the main runway at the city's airport.