Job fair offers clues on dealing with interviews

Mathis Winkler

Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2001 | 9:34 a.m.

Out of work, Colin Saunders had expected a full-blown job fair when he arrived at Nevada Partners in North Las Vegas on Tuesday afternoon.

But what organizers of a day-long information fair at the nonprofit organization offered him were workshops on building self-esteem and interviewing skills. Nevada Partner's monthly, 90-minute job fair was held at the end of the day.

But Saunders, 48, who lost his job as a table game supervisor at The Venetian Sept. 29, said he found the information he gathered during the workshops useful.

"The value of something like this is to be aware of the kind of questions that can be asked" by employers, he said. "It's a trial run."

And that's the kind of help organizers wanted to offer, said Colleen Thoma, director of research for the center of workforce education and occupational research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The center co-sponsored the event, attended by more than 100 people.

"There's not only a need to put displaced workers in touch with recruiters, but also to give them the skills to do this on their own," she said.

Because many Las Vegans who have worked in the tourism industry never have faced such a tight job market, many have not considered the prospect of selling themselves to employers, Thoma said.

"The thought of writing resumes -- these aren't skills they thought they needed to have," she said, adding that the center planned to repeat the event.

Though many said they appreciated the help provided in the workshops, others said they didn't really see the point of the event.

"They don't have any jobs openings," said Gennie Julian, 43, who lost her job as a housekeeper at the Boardwalk Casino on Sept. 25.

She said her unemployment benefits will run out in two weeks.

"I'm freaking out, because I've never been this bad," she said. "I just want to get a job."