Hundreds of unemployed Albertans attend Calgary job fair: ‘I want any job available’

The Stampede Grandstand was packed with people looking for work on Monday.

The “Your Future is Now” job fair focused on entry-level and medium-skill jobs in sectors like retail, hospitality, insurance and agriculture. They’re positions organizers say are sometimes overlooked but can open doors to the unemployed.

“I know in Alberta we’ve been struggling for a long time. And people that lost jobs have maybe spent their savings and have maybe spent their severance and are really in dire straits. So this job fair is critical for many Albertans,” said Vance Langford with the Talent Pool, which organized the event in partnership with the Alberta government.

The event connects hiring employers with hundreds of job-seeking candidates.

Many of the job hunters at the job fair were armed with diplomas and degrees but as they’ve found out, it’s no guarantee of work in Calgary.

“It’s very difficult because the times in Alberta are not good. Here in Alberta especially because of the cheap oil I understand that it is very difficult. There are too many unemployed people here,” said Pavel Shumarov, who moved to Calgary from Bulgaria and has a degree in geographic information systems.

The job fair is one of 100 being held across Alberta from April 24 to 28 as part of Alberta Works Week.

A provincial website says the events will help “connect Albertans to the career services they need to succeed in Alberta’s competitive labour market and realize their full potential.”

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Among the employers that were hiring were landscaping companies and insurance companies.

“We are in such demand because everyone needs these benefits,” said Andrea Cox-Philip with American Income Life Insurance Company.

Canadians’ appetite for flight seems to keep growing. Aviation security companies also need more workers.

“Last year with the new terminal opening, it created an unprecedented demand for us particularly in pre-board to screening officers and it’s certainly something that has carried on into 2017,” said David West with GardaWorld.

Organizers say it’s important for people to look at their skill set differently and even consider an entirely new industry. They also suggest moving to the country because many of the jobs are in rural Alberta.

Langford says there is reason to believe things are looking up when it comes to Alberta companies.

“We know there are companies that are doing significant hiring now. Some of them because they are seasonal and others because they have either stabilized financially or they’ve divested of non-core assets and they’re ready to do business on different terms. And they are hiring for the people they need now so I think the message continues to be cautiously optimistic,” Langford said.

Attendee Leanne Pokoyoway said she has been searching for work for about two years.

“I think I’ve gotten maybe four interviews. It’s tough because I was a stay-at-home mom… I have that big gap on my resume. I’m not high in demand.”

Miriam Uinawune, meanwhile, said she has been struggling to find work after coming to Calgary from Ontario.

“I did schooling in Ontario. There’s some differences apparently with people that do schooling here in Calgary,” she explained. “It seems really tough at the moment.”

The event was open to the public, but also hosted candidates pre-screened by Talent Pool.