A number of Callaway County's largest employers have job openings, and the Callaway Chamber of Commerce is doing its part to help fill them.
From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 12, the Chamber will host a job fair at Callaway Electric Cooperative, 1313 Cooperative Drive, Fulton. The job fair is a special effort to attract new job applicants and try to extend the traditional boundaries of Callaway County's labor pool, said Tamara Fitzpatrick, executive director of the Chamber.
Participating businesses include Mid-America Precast, AZZ/Central Electric Company, Dollar General Distribution Center, Danuser Machine Company and Henderson Products. A job fair conducted in 2015 to help staff Henderson Products' new Fulton facility was an overwhelming success and attracted more than 200 people, Fitzpatrick said.
Chamber organizers hope for similar success this year.
"This is a great opportunity for unemployed or under-employed individuals to fill out multiple job applications in one setting with quality employers from Callaway County who are actively recruiting at this time," said Bruce Hackmann, economic development director for the Chamber. "Representatives from those businesses will be in attendance and available to answer questions."
The available jobs range from unskilled positions to positions with varying degrees of skill and experience. Hackmann said the number of companies actively recruiting is a good barometer of the present health of the Callaway County business environment, but it also shows the need to expand the labor pool from which those companies can hire.
Promotion and marketing for the job fair will not only target Callaway County, but also geographic areas within a 30-45 minute commute. Filling jobs and attracting more people to live in Callaway County is always an intended result, Hackmann added.
Fitzpatrick said the job fair is part of a larger initiative to support the county's business community.
"The Chamber is going all in to provide value to our members," she said. "This job fair came about because we are listening to our members, recognizing the challenges they face, and developing a solution to help address it. Whether it involves recruiting new jobs or filling jobs created by existing businesses, the chamber always has an important and vital role to play."