Part One: Starting a Job Club

A couple of months ago, we started a bi-weekly job club to provide fresh leads and build skills for clients with enough English to follow job leads independently. We tried it with a temporary staffer for a few months a year and a half ago and wanted to see if we could improve it now that we have more permanent job development resources. No clients ever got a job from the initial attempt but we definitely saw improved job search skills among the clients who attended. I’m going to outline our initial plan and then follow up periodically as we see how it goes. It would be great to hear if and how others do this.

Why: I generate more leads on a daily basis that Employment Specialists can utilize and we hate to see them go to waste. We also wanted a venue for additional skill development for some of our clients with stronger English and work history. We also needed another way to monitor client activity levels for RCA and Match Grant compliance.

Where: When we started, we had just organized a very successful group screening interview at a chain restaurant. The atmosphere was very welcoming and friendly. As a result, we saw clients from different countries talking and interacting even with limited English. We wanted to replicate that energy, so decided to hold job club offsite - at the public library. The main branch is very close to our office so clients don’t even have to learn a new bus route to attend. We also thought this would help clients become comfortable with another great community resource.

When: Job Club is scheduled on Monday and Wednesday mornings from 10:30 – 11:30 and longer if we’re in the middle of something and need more time. Having it on Monday morning allows us to capitalize on a weekend’s worth of job announcements. The combination of both days gives clients enough concrete leads to keep them busy all week.

How: I made simple flyers with a map and distributed lots of copies to all of the Employment Specialists. We also publicize the resource by distributing flyers in our monthly Job Readiness Classes. I sit at a visible table on the third floor where people are allowed to talk quietly and talk to clients as they come in. We thought this would spread attendance out over the hour so people could get more personal attention or just listen in.

What: I compile fresh job leads the morning of the meetings, utilizing Craigslist, newspaper classifieds, several websites we check daily and quick cold calls to employers in our database. I include applications if applicable and sometimes prepare additional information like flyers for job fairs or instruction packets for major online employers like Walmart and Target. Sometimes I include articles or announcements about other resources. I try to have several fresh materials every day, including the “Caritas Hot Jobs List”, which I also distribute to the Employment Specialist in hard copy and electronically so they can also use it for other clients.

Coming up: In part two, I’ll share some of the details of how it’s working and what we’ve decided to tweak. We just finished meeting to discuss this, so I’ll share our ideas when I’ve compiled them and finalized a couple of points.