Job fair highlights growth in Caldwell and throughout valley

Whether it’s the highly experienced, the skilled workers or those just starting out, a myriad of employment opportunities for current and future Idahoans are readily available as a result of the state’s continued explosive growth, most especially in the Treasure Valley .

Workers of all ages, abilities and backgrounds pursuing a new career or pathway, an entry-level position, and even those looking to supplement their incomes are seeing a variety of job options and opportunities throughout the region.

On the valley’s west side, the City of Caldwell has now surpassed a population of 73,000 residents. According to statistics provided by the U.S. Census Bureau, the growth rate for the once tiny farming community reached 3.7% during the past year.

Similarly, as population growth creates a greater demand for products and services, companies seek to meet such demands by hiring more workers.

To help fill voids in the labor force, the Idaho Department of Labor (IDOL) recently hosted an early summer job fair at its state office in Caldwell, one of several the IDOL plans to hold throughout the year.

Representatives from as many as 15 local employers from across Canyon County, including the medical field, senior care facilities, the food service industry and three staffing agencies, took part in the event, as did the Oregon Department of Corrections.

IDOL Supervisor Mitchell Post, a 21-year veteran of the agency, said he encounters a wide variety of applicants, while noting some key differences separating the seasoned job hunters from those with far less work experience.

“With the younger jobseekers, they are focusing more on the wage,” Post said. “The older job applicants are looking more at the benefits. And there is also the consideration of flexibility in schedules to allow for a work and life balance.”

Plus, he said employers, including the state, are now more strongly emphasizing a push for “soft skills versus hard skills” when it comes to hiring.

“For the folks we hire at the state, we are less concerned about their technical skills,” he said. “You can teach someone technical skills, but not their soft skills.”

Hard skills can encompass any set of abilities ranging from computer knowledge and typing skills, to certifications, database management and even those candidates classified as bilingual.

On the flip side, soft skills emphasizes communication talents, problem-solving abilities, critical thinking skills and what has long been known in the labor force as a prospective worker’s “attention to detail.”

IDOL Workforce Consultant Traci Petitt said she also has noticed a shift in the job market to a renewed interest in a candidate’s interpersonal skills as the more desirable hiring consideration.

“Back around the crash of ’08, the emphasis was more on hard skills,” said Petitt. “And now we are back searching for the soft skills because when you have solid candidates you can train the hard skills they require.”

Likewise, she said she is not the least bit surprised that Baby Boomers still comprise a huge part of the workforce, as well as those looking to return to a part- or full-time position.

“We have a lot of people who have retired, yet are coming back to work to supplement their income,” she said. “It’s good because this group still has a solid work ethic. That is exciting.”

After recently being laid off, Rob Hamilton, 61, a carpenter by trade, said he made the decision to check out the job fair as a means to help get back on his feet.

“Unemployment only lasts so long, so I had to look at other options,” Hamilton said. “Through the union, I didn’t think I’d get laid off. I figured I be busy until I retired. But here I am.”

For jobseeker Cassandra Banda, the job fair was not only exciting, but an opportunity for growth and a way to help stretch her personal boundaries.

“The hardest part is getting out of my comfort zone and actually coming to a job fair,” Banda said. “It’s the first time I have ever done something like this.”

Applying for work online has been a frustrating part of the process for the 35-year-old Caldwell native, especially when it comes to waiting for an employer to call back and respond to her application.

Having held several physically demanding jobs, including a four-year run as a potato inspector for the J.R. Simplot Company, Banda envisions a future helping others.

“My ultimate goal is to do some type of social work, to work directly with people,” she said. “I think that is what I am best at doing.”

Serving people is the main objective for Home Instead, one of the fair’s employer groups seeking new staff. The agency provides hands-on assistance for seniors, specialized care that allows the elderly to maintain their independence while living at home.

Recruitment Coordinator Evelyn Brush said her agency is always seeking “quality adults who can demonstrate proper care” when working with seniors.

But finding such employees is no easy task.

“Our workers must be independent and have the initiative to do this work,” Brush said. “So, for our company, we hire for the heart. I can train people in lots of things, but I can’t make them nice.

You have to be flexible to meet the needs of our seniors.”

One added bonus or perk the company offers is free, unlimited counseling for its employees, a benefit Brush said goes hand-in-hand with its caregiver positions.

“Your life may be falling apart, but you have to have your head in the game to provide the necessary care our clients need,” she said. “Ultimately, our clients are in the driver’s seat when it comes to their individual services. So we train our caregivers to meet the needs of everybody.”

Meeting needs across the board, whether it be for an individual or a company, is a huge part of the recruitment process for Steven Overby, Business Manager for the International Association of Heat & Frost Insulators, Local Union No. 69.

Based out of Utah, Overby’s construction trade company has been actively taking on plenty of work in the Boise market the past several years. But finding skilled workers has been a cold and frosty process. Let alone, trying to connect with those who may lack the technical skills but possess a burning desire to learn a viable industry trade.

“Anyone willing to show up and who truly wants to work is a big starting point for what we are looking for,” Overby said. “Right now I need more than 20 people, but I have only filled about five spots.”

And with an abundance of work available throughout Idaho, finding workers is the difficult part of the job for Overby, even when offering a starting salary of roughly $20 an hour and health benefits for an entire family that kick in the first day on the job.

“I went over a year needing to fill 20 jobs and couldn’t,” he said. “It’s that hard to find local workers here in Idaho.”

“We can bring people from Salt Lake City, but we’d rather hire locally and keep those workers from Utah home and add to our workforce here.”

Located in Ontario, just across the western Idaho border, the Oregon Department of Corrections is facing a retirement dilemma. Many of its longtime correctional officers are calling it a career, while a number of others are eyeing a sooner-than-later retirement date.

And with a facility that houses 3,000-plus inmates, the largest such institution in Oregon, the need for additional corrections staff is crucial.

“We’re at the stage where we will have up to 200 retirees over the next five years,” Sergeant Chad Ford said. “We’re trying to stay ahead of that curve. A lot of our veteran officers are moving on.”

The facility employs a total of 550 officers, but typically utilizes a crew of 200 for one single dayshift.

Beyond the need for corrections officers, fellow recruiter, Sergeant Matthew Barba said the facility also has an array of available skilled labor positions listed on the agency website.

“We have so many jobs for so many different things,” Barba said. “It’s like running a city minus the zip code.”

And in all cities across the valley, job seekers are being inundated with openings plastered in storefronts, announcements highlighted on marquees, online postings, as well as announcements for job fairs that are popping up more frequently.

Accompanied by his uncle, Dylan Pavlock, 20, said he attended the job fair in hopes of getting his foot in the door with a solid outfit.

With a brief stint doing packaging for Amazon, and another short gig serving up fast food for Del Taco under his belt, the Caldwell native said his primary aim is job stability.

“I’m just looking to get things started,” Pavlock said. “CTI Foods is offering entry-level positions that handle packaging foods for trucks. So far this looks the most promising.”

Prospective employees and employers needing workers can check the IDOL website for future job fair dates and times scheduled for later this year.

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