The working class community of Berea, South Carolina, is home to many young, single mothers who need jobs, and last year, Goodwill Industries of Upper South Carolina officials decided the community was a good spot for a new Goodwill retail store and job center.

In just over a year of operation, about 1,000 people – 600 to 700 of whom are of Hispanic origin – have received job assistance at the Goodwill’s Job Connection Center. That includes assessment, on-the-spot job training, basic computer classes and other general workplace skills training.

Job Connection Center Manager Homer Gomez says his main goal is to place as many people in as many jobs as possible through his network of contacts; Gomez estimates he’s placed 80 people in jobs ranging from construction work to retail service.

“Sometimes, I’ll go out and tell people who I am and what I do,” he said. “That’s how it starts.”

Goodwill Industries of Rhode Island CEO Lori Norris says the Providence Goodwill began job-readiness classes for Hispanics 18 months ago, after she observed traditional adult education programs weren’t targeting the skill building needs of the Hispanic community. The Goodwill program is centered on work skills, but also teaches students life skills and helps build self-esteem.

Instructor Joel Alpert uses role-playing and vocabulary lessons to familiarize students with the workplace. They learn how to interview for a job, fill out forms and talk to an employer. They also learn computer skills that open up the possibilities for job advancement.

Upon completion of the 12-week course, students intern to get actual work experience. “Once they have a job, we’d like them to come in twice a week and continue English, so they don’t forget,” Alpert said.

Sometimes, having an edge is the difference between keeping a job and getting a better one. At its San Antonio Fruitvale Community Center in Oakland, CA, Goodwill Industries of the Greater East Bay is helping many working parents do just that.

The Goodwill opened the community center in October 2003, offering bilingual computer classes, childcare, transportation assistance and hot meals. In just a few months of operations, the center has served 150 people and placed about 35 Hispanics in jobs each month, said Kimberley Scrafano, the Goodwill’s Director of Community and Fund Development.

Staff members teach the parents, mostly single moms, Excel and Microsoft Word in both Spanish and English. The center also has bilingual job search and job readiness programs, Scrafano said.

CEO John Latchford said he’s pleased the center is off to a great start. “Since opening, we have seen the number of people coming to us for assistance rise significantly,” he said. “Expanding our services to evening and weekend hours, providing child supervision and giving hot meals to participants and their families helps reduce the challenges people face in taking advantage of our services.”

Source: Working! Winter 2004

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