Syracuse, N.Y. \u2013 Nearly 100 people turned out Thursday for a job fair geared toward bringing together employers eager to build diverse and inclusive workforces with potential workers.<\/p>\n
The Community at Work Job Fair<\/a> was presented by CareerBridge IT Solutions<\/a>, in partnership with Advance Media NY, syracuse.com | The Post-Standard and CNY Works with support from Wegmans<\/a>. The fair aimed to connect employers with people with physical and mental disabilities to help them land their first job or plan out long-term career growth. <\/p>\n The idea started over a year ago<\/a> when an employee resource group was created at Advance, syracuse.com<\/a>\u2019s parent company, for staffers who have different abilities and for workers who have loved ones with disabilities, said Geoff Herbert, a reporter and podcaster for syracuse.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cWe heard a lot of stories of people that are scared or nervous about finding a job or finding extra barriers for things (when) they shouldn\u2019t have any different experiences,\u201d Herbert said. \u201cThe things that we can do are so much more important than the things that we can\u2019t do. We all have superpowers.\u201d <\/p>\n Herbert said these ideas are what helped launch the \u201cEnable: The Disability Podcast<\/a>,\u201d which was recorded at Thursday\u2019s event, as well as the job fair itself. He said he hoped the event would encourage people to take a look at hiring through a fresh set of eyes. <\/p>\n He also pointed out that sometimes hiring limitations aren\u2019t about the potential workers. A lack of handicap parking spots or too many stairs and not enough ramps can also become challenges.<\/p>\n Twenty employers from across Central New York participated. The companies, which ranged from the East Syracuse Minoa Central School District<\/a> and Carpenters Local 277<\/a> to Catholic Charities of Onondaga County<\/a> and AccessCNY<\/a>, have a proven track record of working with those with disabilities, according to Kyle Hostetler, the adult program manager at CNY Works.<\/p>\n The companies offered a wide range of positions, from entry-level custodial positions to IT service and technical positions. <\/p>\n Many employers echoed Herbert, that people with disabilities have more abilities than many think about. <\/p>\n \u201cBe open-minded,\u201d Victoria Cannon, the recruiter for the Arc of Onondaga,<\/a> an organization that works with and employs people with disabilities, said of employers who may not already be working with those with disabilities. <\/p>\n \u201cYou would be surprised how much an individual with a disability will put into their work,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re very dedicated and want to prove themselves.\u201d <\/p>\n Jessica James, a job seeker at the event, said she enjoyed the number of employers, job opportunities and networking available at the event. <\/p>\n \u201cI learned that when the time is right, it will come, and particular jobs or companies are not for everybody,\u201d James said.<\/p>\n Rosemary Avila, executive director for CNY Works, said she hopes the event will encourage more employers to join in the future and to learn more about the regulations and accommodations available to workers with disabilities. <\/p>\n For those who missed the event, Hostetler and Avila urged both businesses and potential workers to utilize CNY Works\u2019 programs, such as resume building, on-the-job training, and employed worker training.<\/p>\n For both employers and job seekers looking for more information on how to get involved in events like this, email info@cnyworks.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Syracuse, N.Y. \u2013 Nearly 100 people turned out Thursday for a job fair geared toward bringing together employers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":221143,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[134609,64,63,99,134610,37415,180,1025,44,134611,134612],"class_list":["post-221142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jobs","tag-advancelocal","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-business","tag-cny-works","tag-editorial","tag-jobs","tag-new-york","tag-news","tag-post-standard","tag-syracuse-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=221142"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221142\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/221143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=221142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=221142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=221142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}