It has been a long and difficult seven months for Matthew Schwambach.<\/p>\n
Citing economic challenges, the company he had worked for the past five years made drastic cuts to its workforce in February. The Muhlenberg Township man was among those who found themselves out of work as a result.<\/p>\n
Without a steady income and the bills starting to pile up, Schwambach said he decided to move back in with his parents while he searched for a new position. But finding reliable employment that pays a decent wage has been a struggle.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese past few months have been really hard,\u201d the 35-year-old said. \u201cI\u2019m fortunate that my parents allowed me to move back in, but I wish I could be able to support myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Schwambach said the hiring process can be daunting, especially for someone like him who has a criminal background.<\/p>\n
\u201cI worked hard to get my life back on track and I feel like I have a lot to offer if someone gives me a chance to prove it,\u201d he said. \u201cI have skills, I have experience, I work hard.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Matthew](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/REG-L-ConnectionsJobFair1524.jpg\")
Matthew Schwambach of Muhlenberg Township was among hundreds to check out the career fair hosted by Connections Work at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel on Monday, Sept. 21, 2026, that helps connect those with criminal records with employment and resources. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n
Schwambach is not the only one looking for a second chance.<\/p>\n
He was one of hundreds of eager job seekers who visited the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Reading on Monday to check out the career fair hosted by Connections Work that helps connect those with criminal records with employment and resources.<\/p>\n
Over the last 16 years, Connections Work has hosted two job fairs annually.<\/p>\n
Officials of the nonprofit said the events give businesses an opportunity to connect directly with job seekers whose talent and potential may be overlooked through traditional hiring channels. They also give job candidates a chance to learn about available positions, career paths and company culture.<\/p>\n
There were more than 30 employers attending the event Monday. Those companies included New Castle Lawn & Landscape, Construction Master Services, Tower Health, Brentwood Industries, Unique Snacks and Spring House Window & Door.<\/p>\n
While the career fair has traditionally specialized in helping those involved in the criminal justice system find employment, the event is open to all members of the community regardless of their background.<\/p>\n
![\"More](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/REG-L-ConnectionsJobFair1527.jpg\")
More than 30 employers attended the Connections Work job fair at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel on Monday, Sept. 21, 2026. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n
Barbara Perez said she was grateful for that. The 53-year-old Reading resident has been searching for a job since moving back to the city after living in Florida the last 12 years.<\/p>\n
She said she thought her experience as a forklift operator would make her a good candidate for a position in a warehouse setting. Unfortunately, she has received no interest in her applications.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought with all the warehouses around here it would be easy to find something,\u201d she said. \u201cIt has been a little shocking to be honest. I have so much experience and have heard absolutely nothing from any of the places I applied.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perez said she realized she may need help so she came to the event to speak with representatives from Berks County CareerLink and local employment agencies to get advice about what she could do differently to land a job.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things that I find challenging is that the whole application process is online these days,\u201d she said. \u201cI would rather talk to someone face to face because I think that would help me make an impression.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why the career fair seemed like a good fit, Perez said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can actually talk to people at these companies and learn about what positions they have open,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is a nice thing they have here.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It has been a long and difficult seven months for Matthew Schwambach. Citing economic challenges, the company he…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":290986,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,182,139,28,128,130,129,706],"class_list":["post-290985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county","tag-local-news","tag-news","tag-pennsylvania","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-top-stories-reg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/290985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=290985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/290985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/290986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=290985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=290985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=290985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}