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3 Milwaukee drive-thru job fairs held in areas hardest hit by COVID-19

Posted at 2:40 PM, Aug 20, 2020
and last updated 2020-08-20 15:40:46-04

MILWAUKEE — The City of Milwaukee Office of Workforce Development held three simultaneous drive-thru job fairs in the city Thursday to offer job seekers "immediate employment opportunities," according to a news release.

From noon to 4 p.m., people drove to Bethesda Baptist Church, Ephesians Missionary Baptist Church, and Basilica of St. Josephat to pick up a bag filled with flyers on employment assistance programs and lists of companies currently hiring.

You didn't need to bring a resume and you didn't need to dress for a job interview. One man told TMJ4 News he showed up to get his daughter the paperwork.

"She does temporary work, but she's looking for a full-time job," Michael Johnson said.

Another job seeker said she's been looking for work for two months.

"Being in the job search in the midst of COVID-19 has been a lot more difficult than I anticipated," said Michelle Shallowhorn.

City leaders along with The City of Milwaukee Office of Workforce Development purposefully held the drive-thru job fairs in neighborhoods hardest hit by COVID-19.

"We were able to anchor ourselves in areas where unemployment was most felt," said Bernadette Karanja, Workforce Development Coordinator.

"If we had a ten percent unemployment rate pre-pandemic, you can only imagine what it looks like now," Karanja continued.

The City of Milwaukee Health Department reports from mid-March to date, there are 16,660 COVID-19 cases and 267 deaths.

The 53215 on the southside has 3,299 cases. Areas on the north side, like the 53212 and 53206 zip codes, have 1,005 COVID-19 cases combined.

If you couldn't make the drive-thru job fair Thursday, visit directconnectmke.com to set up a profile to create a resume. The City of Milwaukee Office of Workforce Development can help get you connected with employers.

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