SCRANTON, Pa. — Lackawanna County employees set up tables inside the government center lobby in downtown Scranton. The county hopes to fill roughly two dozen open positions during a two-day job fair. County officials say they have plenty of openings and not enough applicants.
"It's a tough environment right now. It really is. And I don't really fully understand why but I guess there's a lot of underlying reasons," said Lackawanna County Commissioner Jerry Notarianni.
"I know a lot of our employees are going above and beyond right now and really picking up the slack, so we're just really hoping to alleviate some of that stress," said Joann Decker, the Lackawanna County acting human resources director.
Brad Killian just graduated from college and heard about the job fair. He figured he'd stop by with resume in hand in the hopes of finding one job to apply to and was surprised.
"I didn't know when I walked in, I thought there was only be like maybe three or four options, but the table over there's a whole mess of different jobs to pick from, so it's really nice," Killian said.
Emily Welby is also on the job hunt and hopes the odds of landing one through the job fair are in her favor.
"I went through another state job a couple weeks ago, and I didn't get it, but threw my name and had again, you know, worth a shot.
Some jobs require prior experience or certain qualifications. County officials say it's important to get these jobs filled as soon as possible with the best candidates.
"We're really hoping that we get some really quality applications, and then we can fill these positions and continue to serve the taxpayers," Decker added.
Those interested in applying for the open jobs can stop by the government center on Thursday from noon to 6 p.m.
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