Many employers are looking to add to their payrolls, at least seasonally, at the event today at SPC's Clearwater campus.
By KELLY VIRELLA
Published November 18, 2003
CLEARWATER - A small sign the local economy may be growing is visible at St. Petersburg College's Clearwater campus.
In the past few weeks more employers have been calling Kathleen Griffin, the school's career center counselor, looking for workers.
Starting this morning at the school's job fair, the workers will get the chance to take advantage of some of the economy's good vibrations. Twenty-five employers are scheduled to recruit at the fair, which is open to the public.
Sears will offer free help with resume writing, Griffin said. WorkNet Pinellas and Career Central of Pasco County, two local employment agencies that give free job training and job placement, will also be at the fair.
Although as many employers came to the April fair, when the economy was sluggish, as are scheduled to be there today, employment prospects look much better, said Griffin, career center counselor.
"We're getting more job leads," Griffin said. "We're getting more job announcements. More employers are calling us asking us to post job announcements."
The outdoor fair runs from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 2465 Drew St., near the Language Arts Building. It will feature jobs in the Tampa Bay area with local companies and international corporations.
Morton Plant Mease, Bright House Networks, Skechers, UPS and Toys "R" Us are some of the companies that have registered.
Registration is free and companies can register on site, said Debra Kilgore, a career specialist with St. Petersburg College. "We'll set up a table for any legitimate business that comes," Kilgore said.
The national economy grew at an annual rate of 7.2 percent in the third quarter, a level unmatched in nearly 20 years. Economists say it's a fluke probably spurred by this summer's heavy consumer spending, which followed tax refunds and a home refinancing boom.
Economic growth in Florida and the Tampa Bay area hasn't been as eye-popping as it has been nationally, said David Denslow, a University of Florida economist.
The reason: Florida never lost as many jobs as other parts of the country, which were pulverized by downturns in manufacturing, he said.
Still, productivity is higher in the state and in the Tampa Bay area, and that means more jobs, he said. Many of them will be in the services industry, especially medical services, he said. But many of them will be seasonal.
"There will be a surge of employment in late November to December as occurs every Christmas season," he said.
The Christmas holidays are requiring UPS to hire 450 seasonal workers in the Tampa Bay area, said Christina Davenport, a UPS human resources specialist.
The company needs driver helpers, package handlers to load and unload trucks, and customer counter associates. Each job starts at $8.50 per hour, Davenport said.
The jobs will end by Dec. 31, but some dependable employees will be able to parlay the temporary jobs into permanent ones, Davenport said. The economy has been so strong, the company may be able to retain more temporary employees than usual, she said.
"The past couple of weeks our business has picked up quite a bit," she said. "We usually don't pick up this volume until after Thanksgiving, but we've blown it out of the water."
