Jobs Waiting Celebrates Hudson Valley Milestone: 200th Job Placement

From Jobs Waiting: After being out of work for over a year, Carla Crawford now has a new job as a Human Resources Assistant at St. John’s Riverside Hospital in Yonkers. Now she has her sights set on a career in healthcare administration, thanks to Jobs Waiting, a federally-funded regional job training partnership which trains long-and-short-term unemployed individuals for jobs in the region’s fastest growing sectors. Crawford is the 200th individual to obtain employment through the program, a milestone lauded by her new employer.

“We congratulate Jobs Waiting on its success,” said Marc Leff, vice president of human resources at St. John’s Riverside Hospital. “We’re always looking to hire qualified candidates, and for this position, Carla Crawford was that candidate. We find that soft skills are not what they once were, so it is challenging to find good people. But Jobs Waiting is very attractive to us because it provides access to candidates that are motivated and work-ready.”

Since the program’s launch in 2014, over 463 unemployed individuals have participated in a Jobs Waiting career-readiness boot camp and 295 have continued on to industry-specific training, including Crawford, who says the additional credentials helped her gain new skills in a booming industry: healthcare.

“A lot changes when you’ve been out of the job market for a while,” says Crawford, who left her previous job at a residential facility for individuals with disabilities to have her first child. “The Jobs Waiting team encouraged me, gave me confidence, helped pay for college courses, and trained me on how to interview for jobs. Then I received two offers! Now, I’m at a place where I can grow, where I can see myself actually having a future.”

Growing employer network

The program’s success is attributed, in part, to its growing employer network, according to Donnovan Beckford, Executive Director, Westchester County Office of Workforce Investment & Westchester-Putnam Workforce Investment Board.

“Over 300 employers across the Hudson Valley are now working with Jobs Waiting to support their human resources efforts,” says Beckford. “The word is out about what we have to offer: a pipeline of focused, committed employment candidates, plus funds to help hire and train their new employees. For Hudson Valley employers, it’s an amazing opportunity.”

Major healthcare organizations, hospitals, and medical practices have hired Jobs Waiting graduates, including WESTMED Medical Group, Montefiore Health System, VNS Westchester, Caremount Medical Group, and Crystal Run Healthcare. Employers such as ENT and Allergy Associates, Cabrini of Westchester, and Northern Westchester Hospital have accessed the program’s training incentives, including funds for paid work tryouts and on-the-job training (OJT), which help offset the costs of hiring new employees.

WMC Health recently committed to hiring at least five graduates from the program for clinical and non-clinical positions.

“Our healthcare network is expanding, and as we grow, we always look to improve the services we provide,” says Jordy Rabinowitz, senior vice president, human resources, Westchester Medical Center Health Network. “To do so, we want to find the right people. There’s a lot of competition in this area for talent, which is why we strongly support this program’s aim in getting talented people back to work.”

Image Courtesy of Jobs Waiting