http://www.boston.com/dailynews/290/nation/10_000_line_up_at_job_fair_for:.shtml

10,000 line up at job fair for those thrown out of the work by the Trade Center tragedy

By Karen Matthews., Associated Press, 10/17/2001 17:25

NEW YORK (AP) About 10,000 job-seekers flocked to a city-sponsored employment fair Wednesday for the multitudes of people thrown out of work by the World Trade Center disaster. Thousands were turned away, prompting the city to make plans for a second event.

''It's crazy it makes you realize how many people are unemployed out there,'' said Stephanie Sulaimen, a former recruiter for Merrill Lynch who joined a line that snaked around Madison Square Garden for the Twin Towers Job Expo.

Some 13,000 openings were offered at the red, white and blue expo in such fields as financial services and health care. The city estimates that up to 100,000 jobs were lost as a result of the Trade Center attack.

The city asked that employees who lost jobs as a direct result of the terrorist attacks be given priority, but the job fair was open to everybody. The fair attracted many people who were unemployed before the attacks.

An estimated 10,000 people showed up, though there was room for only about 2,000 at a time. Deputy Mayor Anthony Coles said the city would hold a second job fair. No date has been set.

Coles said 200 employers attended the six-hour expo, and he pronounced it a success.

The jobs ranged in pay and skill level, from high-paying, executive-level positions to entry-level, service sector ones. Middle-aged people in business suits mixed with young people in jeans.

Chris Ferguson, general manager at KFC, said he took in more than 100 applications and 50 people would be hired.

Ronnie Taffet, vice president for public relations at Macy's, said a dozen applicants were invited to a formal interview. Macy's has about 6,000 jobs, most of them temporary holiday positions, in the metropolitan area.

Many job-seekers were suffering from the ripple effect of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Shawna Johnson works at the observation deck of the Empire State Building and has seen her hours cut from 35 to 15 since the terrorist attacks. ''They just don't need anyone,'' she said.

Bernardo Builes, a kitchen worker at the Marriott Hotel at LaGuardia Airport, said his hours had been cut, too: ''The problem is nobody wants to fly.''

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2001