TEXAS, USA — Governor Abbott has opted Texas out of federal unemployment meaning that on June 26th, jobless Texans will lose $300 weekly in unemployment. As these residents head back into the workforce, they’ll need to adjust to a whole new way of hiring.
Mary Ann Rojas with Workforce Solutions East Texas said, “There are plenty of jobs out there. We have 1000s on our database.”
This is why the state is nudging its jobless residents to start looking for jobs again. Experts say there are plenty of employers looking to hire in a range of fields. Just remember that during the pandemic, times have changed.
"It's very key to understand, the traditional job selection processes isn't what it used to be," said consultant Adrienne Somerville. "So what's really key is, it's not the hardcopy of applications, it is really more like social media platform hiring options.”
It's important to leverage social media but also leverage the skills you already have.
Somerville added, "Whatever is not there that used to be there for you, you still have that same talent and skill set that can be leveraged and capitalized, and redeployed in any organization.”
Some local resources for you to be aware of before you get back into any industry:
- If you’re a dislocated worker due to COVID or if you’ve been laid off, you can be retrained for free.
- If you’re in need of childcare while you work and meet eligibility requirements, you can have that completely paid for as well.
- These are both offered through Workforce Solutions East Texas.
Most hiring is done virtually now. If you need help navigating online platforms, Workforce Solutions can help you brush up on those skills as well- free of charge.