800-plus job seekers jam Yuba City employment fair

Forever 21 co-workers Ruby Mendoza, 21, and Ana Vargas, 20, walked around the Yuba City job fair together on Thursday, looking for new employment opportunities.

"It's been really hard to find a job here in Yuba City," Vargas said. "It's a small town."

More than 800 job seekers, mostly young people, lined up to see recruiters in Veterans Memorial Hall, with about 35 employers seeking to fill more than 250 openings. The event, which also included a resume station, was sponsored by the Colusa, Sutter and Yuba One Stops, the Employment Development Department and CalWORKs.

"The employers couldn't believe how many people showed up," said Sutter County One Stop's Linda Baker.

Vargas said she wants to work at a bank or in the medical field, and is planning on going back to school to study business or to become a licensed vocational nurse. Mendoza has an associate's degree from Yuba College and said she is considering business as a career path.

Marysville resident Antonio Rendon, 23, said he has been looking for work for almost a year. He is attending Yuba College and getting One Stop training to become a certified nursing assistant.

"I decided to start going back to school ... I had to get certified in something," Rendon said.

Couple Paris Wood, 29, and Charles Brewer, 25, were filling out applications outside the building later in the morning. Brewer said he has been looking for a job for two years and has filled out "dozens and dozens" of applications.

"I've been attending Yuba College as a full-time student while I'm looking for work," Brewer said.

Wood said she has filled out at least 60 applications in the past two weeks. She lost her job in October after a long illness.

Know what work you want

Rideout Health's 54 openings offered at the Yuba City job fair included licensed professionals, such as registered nurses and certified nursing assistants, along with people to do housekeeping and reception, said recruitment supervisor Estee Holland.

"I've had a line since the doors opened," she said.

Tam Le from the Plus Group, a staffing agency offering jobs in Chico, Woodland, Colusa County, Olivehurst and Yuba City, said she chatted with two or three people who would be willing to drive to Chico for work. However, she said, people should be specific about what they would like to do when asking about what is available.

"I've had people say, 'I'll take anything,'" said Le, whose response was followed by colleague Anna Timofeyev.

"That's a no-no," said Timofeyev.

CONTACT Laura van der Meer at lvandermeer@appealdemocrat.com or 749-4771. Find her on Facebook at /ADlvandermeer or on Twitter at @ADlvandermeer.