Largest job fair of the year brings 250 employers, 6,000 job seekers

El Paso’s biggest job fair of the year was held Wednesday, hosted by Workforce Solutions Borderplex at the downtown convention center with Southwest University and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. So what were the prospects of actually getting a job?

Workforce Solutions was expecting about 6,000 job seekers for the fair, to talk to 250 employers with an estimated 2,300 jobs to fill. It was a big opportunity to find a job for those out of work, or just to see what’s out there.

“Well, I do have a job right now,” Samantha Thompson said. “But I am just looking to expand myself, just professionally. And I think this is a fantastic opportunity for myself to really see what else is out there.”

For attendees like Thompson and many more, the fair is a place to network and learn. But some like Jaimei Diaz actually landed the job after an interview Wednesday.

“I got hired today,” Diaz said. “I just applied for Southwest University, for an I.T. technician. They got me the job.”

An exciting if not typical result for the job fair overall, with seekers like Lucy Palomino well into the job search already.

“Looking, searching for a job,” Palomino said. “I am in transition, just got laid off. So I’m here to look and see what the opportunities are.”

Palomino took the opportunity to talk to employers at the fair and make face-to-face connections with whom she’s been applying already.

“I’ve been applying, and I’ve been searching and helping people with disabilities,” Palomino said. “So that’s what I’m looking for.”

The fair also holds hope for those in more difficult situations like Leonel Hernandez, who has been out of a job for more than a year and looking for something in data entry.

“They give me a lot of hope,” Hernandez said. “Today, I have an interview at 6, so hopefully we’ll see how that goes.”

While the fair may be over, there’s still plenty of information on the employers looking to hire at Workforce Solutions Borderplex’s website: