CareerLink Lycoming County aims to meet people ‘where they are’ from new offices in Williamsport
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It didn't move far, but it will have a big impact.
That's what Erica Mulberger, executive director of Advance Central PA, speaking on behalf of PA CareerLink Lycoming County based in Williamsport, said Thursday morning before a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the relocation of the CareerLink Lycoming County. She spoke from the new offices at 330 Pine St.
Advance Central PA is a local workforce board development staff.
"Doors to opportunity, doors to new careers, doors to new skills, doors to new possibilities and sometimes those doors can change the direction of someone's entire life," Mulberger said.
CareerLink Lycoming is considered to be a one-stop resource for job seekers, for employers, and for trainers and workforce development needs.
"Today is really about meeting people where they are," said Nancy Walker, secretary of the state Department of Labor and Industry who was invited to participate in the ribbon-cutting.
CareerLink staff said they will be helping job-seekers by investing in the tools and partnerships that are necessary to help them get on a clear pathway.
Such guidance on career pathways is for potential jobs, many with reasonable and family-sustaining wages, and with future opportunity to invest in human capital and have these workers plant their roots in this community.
For employers, CareerLink is about ensuring there is a workforce needed for today but well into the future, Walker remarked.
The office is expected to connect people to jobs, and support employers in "real-time." The office is fully accessible, with a computer lab and cutting-edge technology.
"Most importantly, it has people who are going to change the trajectory of people's lives," Walker said.
Each day, individuals are walking through CareerLink for their first time, or they are looking for the training to do something different or better, she said.
Employers are looking for additional workforce, or they are going to upskill training needs for their workforce.
"They are going to be here and they are going to get what they need because of this CareerLink," Walker said. "You don't have to navigate your journey alone, you've got a CareerLink," she said for those job seekers out there.
She thanked all the staff, board members, Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce, elected officials including Mayor Derek Slaughter, Lycoming County Commissioners, state Rep. Jamie Flick, R-South Williamsport, representing the 83rd House District, the CareerLink partners, employers and anyone who helped make this relocation happen.
Flick noted ahead of the ribbon-cutting that some grandparents might have had the same job forever.
"They worked at Sylvania, they worked at Piper -- wherever, but now people change jobs. Kids are expected to change jobs maybe a dozen times in their lives, maybe more, he said.
"A place like CareerLink is critical, more now than ever, as people come up with fresh ideas or are forced to make career changes," Flick said.
During the day activities took place between noon and 3 p.m., featuring resume reviews, career assessments, mock interviews. an expungement clinic hosted by North Penn Legal Services, and the opportunity to meet with 10 local hiring employers.
County Commissioner Mark Mussina said he witnessed a prior presentation on CareerLink and attested to the fact that it's not a glorified temp agency.
"They're different," he said, adding that from a purely employer-side, providers who have positions open should contact CareerLink, and ask them about their programs.
"We have had multiple successful hirings through CareerLink at the county just from that presentation," Mussina said.