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Today hospitality and tourism industry hosting first job fest of 2017

01/25/2017

Jennifer Gibson Schecter,

If you can explain for the 10th time today how to pronounce Chartres Street, you may be destined for a career in the hospitality and tourism sector in New Orleans. Today is the first in a year-long series of job fairs to help job seekers find positions in NOLA’s largest industry and aid businesses in finding the local talent that is the key to success.

The job fest is today, Jan. 25, from 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at the St. Bernard Recreation Center located at 1500 Lafreniere St.

The New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau (NOCVB) and City Councilmember Jason Williams have collaborated to bring back this popular job fair for its second year. As a new addition, this event will include free health screenings by the Daughters of Charity as well.

“The New Orleans CVB looks forward to partnering with Councilmember-At-Large Jason Williams to bring employment opportunities and health screenings to his constituents,” said Cheryl Teamer, vice president of public affairs at NOCVB. “This week’s “job fest,” as we like to call it, is the first of the year, and is offering the first ever free health screenings at our events. With the hospitality industry employing more than 86,000 New Orleanians, we feel it’s important to offer both career and health and wellness services throughout many different neighborhoods across New Orleans.”

According to Teamer as many as 600 job seekers attended the last job fair and the NOCVB anticipates continued interest throughout the 2017 event series.

The event is specifically designed for comfort, and encourages job seekers to connect with industry employers in an environment that is friendly and supportive, allows for professional networking and facilitates the hiring process. Event organizers recommend attendees bring an updated resume with them, but it is not required.

L to R photo credit: Todd Coleman, Saveur Magazine*. Zack Smith

Expressing his gratitude to NOCVB, partners and vendors for supporting the event, Councilmember Williams explained, “This job fair is about opportunity. It’s about showing these prospective employers the enormous human capital that exists here in our city. Our goal is simple – connect folks who need jobs with employers looking to fill positions. It's about access to work and supporting families and communities. It is important that we ensure opportunities in the thriving tourism and service industry are available to everyone.”

Tourism is a $7 billion dollar industry in New Orleans. Careers represented at the job fest can range from food and beverage service, housekeeping, sales, guest relations, finance, administration and more. Many of the positions can lead to career growth and promotion, as well as employee benefits.

The following is a list of participating businesses at press time:

Hotel Monteleone

Wyndham Vacation Ownership

Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office

Hyatt Place New Orleans Convention Center

Emeril's Restaurant Group

Le Pavillon Hotel

Audubon Nature Institute

Hudson Group

Hyatt Centric French Quarter New Orleans

Ballard Brands, LLC

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