Monday marked the 125th anniversary of a holiday created to recognize the American worker.
Labor Day, the first Monday in September, became a federal holiday in June of 1894 with an act of Congress under President Grover Cleveland. It's a day to celebrate the solidarity of workers, their contribution to our society, and the resilience of working Americans. Lima Allen County is currently seeing a strong workforce with only 4.7% unemployment.
Ohio Means Jobs Allen County reports that Allen County has a workforce of just over 49,000 with 47,000 of them employed. Ohio Means Jobs Allen County says there is a lot of pressure on labor currently from the employer which is allowing wages to creep up. They hope this will encourage those unemployed to re-engage in the workforce.
"Right now it is an employee's market. Our jobs typically have been hovering around 1,700 to 1,500 openings in a 10-mile radius of Allen County, so it's a pretty strong market right now if you're looking to get into work," commented Joe Patton, Ohio Means Jobs Allen County Executive Director.
In this tight job market, Ohio Means Jobs Allen County is working to help employers improve hiring practices and recruitment efforts. Due to this, they are building relationships with local colleges for training opportunities.
"From the agency's perspective, we get to benefit from their training and education that they bring to the table and then you know what our ultimate goal is to hire them but if their long term goals are different than that, they win by getting that work experience and that skill set that they can build on their resume," explained Paula Siebeneck, Workforce Development Supervisor.
If you are interested in Ohio Means Jobs Allen County services you can contact them at 419-999-0360.
