BROOKLYN, N.Y. (PIX11) — As the city’s workforce continues to evolve, more older adults are stepping back into the job market with new energy and skills.
Inside the Brooklyn Public Library, dozens of job seekers move between recruiting tables at Talent Connect: Hiring Hall, an event hosted by the New York City Department for the Aging (NYC Aging). The program connects New Yorkers age 55 and older with nearly 45 employers looking for experienced workers ready to re-enter or redefine their careers.
Phalyn Williams was one of them, stopping at nearly every booth she could. “It’s my first time attending a hiring hall,” she said.
Williams, a licensed attorney from Ohio with more than a decade of legal and administrative experience, returned to New York City just before the pandemic. “It’s been a while since I’ve been in the job market, and I am relearning a new environment,” she said. “It’s been very exciting and exuberant, busy.”
She said participating gave her both renewed confidence and a chance to adapt to new technology. “Back in my day, it was primarily paper. Now we have upgraded ourselves. There’s more reliance on AI and technology and all these other interesting fields of endeavor.”
For Chandra Smith Thomas, Assistant Commissioner of Workforce and Community Development at NYC Aging, events like this are about more than resume, they’re about inclusion. “Older adults are our priority,” she said. “The need is economic stability, the need is age inclusivity, the need is to age in place.”
For people like Williams, that mission is what makes the difference, helping them sharpen their skills while rediscovering purpose. “It’s giving me the opportunity to see what’s available, to sharpen up my interviewing skills,” she said.
To learn more about NYC Aging’s workforce programs and upcoming hiring events, click here.
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