Breaking My Cherry At The Job Fair

Yesterday was rainy, cloudy and simply a depressingly dreary day. So, I stepped out in coat and tie and decided to head for my first job fair.

 Now, as I have been gainfully employed my entire life the idea of a job fair was somewhat nebulous. I have certainly been to fairs in the past. Among those visited are country fairs with cakes and crops and farmer’s daughters leading bulls (and boyfriends) around by the nose. I also have been to Renaissance Fairs, where actors or wannabe’s in period costumes recite Shakespeare with Jersey accents and a preponderance of turkey legs and beer (or should that be ale?) are in abundant supply.

 So, when I saw the word “fair,” I was ready for a good time.

 It was not to be. There were no turkey legs. No one was quoting the Bard, and while there was a good deal of bull in the air, not a farmer’s daughter was to be seen.

 At the “fair” in north Hartford there five or six tables: At least two from local career training centers promising a new life, one looking for Verizon clerks for the ubiquitous cellular telephone stands one sees in malls, another looking for temporary clerical positions and another promising something, but I could not determine exactly what. A representative for the  Armed Forces was there as well.

 The people in charge were pleasant enough. They greeted each entrant with a smile and an invitation to sign in. Of course, since they have jobs their smiles seemed somewhat forced, and their invitation to sign in could be interrupted as a way of making sure they could prove people came to the fair so that they could keep their jobs and their smiles.

 Three decades in the journalism business leaves one somewhat cynical.

 It took all of five minutes to circumvent the room. I spoke with a pleasant woman from Post University about retraining (old dog, new tricks) and that was it.

 During my time there, I saw no less than fifty people be greeted, sign in and make their way across the chipped vinyl floors. It was not difficult to spot the newly unemployed from the veteran unemployed. The newbies entered smiling, dressed for business with jackets and ties, or business dresses. Those who had been at it for a while were somewhat more casual. The veteran unemployed entered unsmiling, signed in to prove they were there, then immediately headed outside for a cigarette.  Why bother chasing a rainbow when it has not rained.

 Whether it was more depressing inside or outside is difficult to say, but I know as I headed out into the drizzly afternoon it was with a rising apprehension that this storm might last longer than expected.

Comments

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Job fairs or career fairs give you a hold of how a recruitment process follows up. They are really helpful for youngsters, specially who arrive in job fairs for their first interview as they get to interact with a lot more people quite similar to them, share their views and experiences and express themselves. They simply get to know more about how to prepare and make themselves more presentable for an interview.