Innovate+Educate announces the 2nd Annual Job-Ready Hire Fair at the Albuquerque Rail Yards
Over 40 leading Albuquerque companies will bring high-demand jobs to out-of-school and unemployed
young adults as part of the national effort to support skills based hiring.
ALBUQUERQUE, NM – April 13, Today, Innovate+Educate (I+E) announced that the second annual Job-Ready Hire Fair will be held on May 11, 2017 at the Albuquerque Rail Yards. Innovate+Educate is a national nonprofit with offices in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. The organization’s focus is on developing strategies for new employment pathways in NM and across the U.S. based on skills and competencies. Job-Ready Hire is funded by the Rockefeller Foundation and is in partnership with TalentABQ, an initiative funded by the City of Albuquerque.
“A great first job can truly open up a pathway to lifelong opportunity for a young person,” said Mayor Richard Berry, Mayor of Albuquerque. “The City is proud to partner with the numerous community partners across Albuquerque to connect youth to jobs. I believe companies across the county have a role and responsibility to create opportunities for young people across the economic spectrum.”
“A great first job can truly open up a pathway to lifelong opportunity for a young person.”
— Mayor Richard Berry, Mayor, Albuquerque, New Mexico
The Job-Ready Hire Fair is designed to give young adults, ages 18 – 29, an opportunity to apply for and receive employment based on their skills. Many young adults have skills for employment and are presented with barriers to employment such as degrees and experience. Job-Ready Hire reinforces pathways for jobseekers based on their competencies and skills, qualifying them for many jobs in Albuquerque. Over 40 major companies in the Albuquerque area will be on hand for applicants to meet with and talk with about open positions. Career counselors will be at the fair to help candidates with job readiness. In addition, candidates are encouraged to take a newly released soft skills assessment, Core Score. Core Score will help identify candidates that are job-ready, measuring critical skills including literacy, communications, leadership, and customer service, and they can earn their digital badges through I+E’s partnership with Credly. Core Score will also map candidates to training and curriculum to skill up at one of the 35 TalentABQ skill up centers.
"Job-Ready Hire is one of the leading projects for Rockefeller around their national work that is shifting employer hiring strategies by reducing barriers to employment and advancing new hiring and advancement strategies."
— Jamai Blivin, CEO, Innovate+Educate
“We are thankful for the funding from the Rockefeller Foundation in supporting Albuquerque in advancing innovative business hiring practices for employers. Job-Ready Hire is one of the leading projects for Rockefeller around their national work that is shifting employer hiring strategies by reducing barriers to employment and advancing new hiring and advancement strategies. We know this year will be a huge success, and we are grateful to our community partners supporting the event,” said Jamai Blivin, CEO of Innovate+Educate.
Over 600 participants showed up for last year’s Job-Ready Hire Fair and over 300 candidates were hired by employers in less than 4 hours. This year over 1000 candidates are anticipated to participate. Interested candidates are invited to register for free at www.job-ready-hire.org and are encouraged to arrive to the event early to receive their badges and training. The actual hiring event begins at 9:00am and runs until 1:00pm, and there will also be music, food trucks and giveaways.