By Marilyn Odendahl, Truth Staff
modendahl@etruth.com
ELKHART -- The Indiana Department of Workforce Development is adding staff members to the local WorkOne office and offering workshops to help the increasing number of local workers looking for work.
The Elkhart WorkOne office on Waterfall Drive will have four new personnel next week and is planning to add another four in a few weeks, said Gary Abell, DWD spokesman.
Clients coming into the office do not have the skills, Abell said, to use a computer and file an unemployment claim. Since forms completed incorrectly can take longer to process and the volume of workers applying for benefits is larger than it has been, the agency is bringing on more employees to answer questions and provide computer assistance.
"We're trying to put as many people upfront so that it helps reduce the delays that could potentially happen on the back end," Abell said.
Free and open to anyone, the workshops will focus on resume development, job search techniques and interviewing skills. The goal, Abell said, is to make the workers as "marketable as possible" by teaching them how to create a resume in a format that employers want and presenting themselves well during an interview.
The DWD offers these classes around the state from time to time but the number of layoffs prompted the department to present the full series to area employees, both with and without jobs.
"We're very aware of the need there," Abell said.
Also to serve as many people as possible, the workshops, typically three hours in length, will be repeated at different times and locations. Participants do not have to register in advance.
Classes will begin at 9 a.m. Mondays at the Nappanee Public Library (the Sept. 1 class will be on Sept. 2 because of the Labor Day holiday) and will be offered again at 1 p.m. Wednesdays at the Newton Center in Lakeville and at 6 p.m. Thursdays at the WorkOne office in Elkhart.