The Suffolk County
Labor Department held a job fair in Sayville on Tuesday as some business owners
say they are struggling to find employees.
The department says
there are currently 29,000 jobs available on Long Island.
Suffolk County Labor
Department Commissioner Rosalie Drago says the top industries
looking for employees right now are in health care, education,
technology and hospitality. She says job seekers are looking for better
pay, help with transportation and flexible schedules, including a more improved
work-life balance.
“We used to hold
centralized large job fairs, but now people are more comfortable in smaller
settings,” Drago says. “Employees, the job seekers, are seeking flexibility,
hybrid work for many of the industries, so if they're faced with options
that employers who don't offer hybrid solution, that's been a challenge for a
lot of the roles.”
Some industries have
struggled to find employees because there's been a shift in the kind of
work people want since the pandemic.
Michael McElwee owns
four restaurants and bars on Long Island. When he spoke with News 12 in the
summer, he said it was hard for him to find employees. He says the situation
hasn't improved much since then.
“Some people are
basically coming on after a couple of weeks and then saying, ‘I think I
want to go to a different industry,’” he says.
McElwee says it's
forced him to think outside the box and offer prospective employees more
financial incentives
“We're offering signing
bonuses and bonuses if you stay with us for three months, but it's just it's
harder and harder to recruit the people that truly want to work,” he says.
If you're looking for
employment and couldn't make it to the job fair,
click here for a list of openings.