Feb 27, 2009

New job 'screening' process

WHEN Ms Annie Yeo, 32, left home for a job fair on Friday, she had more than a good chance of securing a position with an employer.

That was because the organisers had already contacted her earlier to confirm that she had the work experience and educational qualifications for the hotel and sales positions that she was interested in.

This new 'screening' process, ahead of when job fairs are held, is to ensure that there will be a better fit between job seekers and employers when such events are held, said National Trades Union Congress deputy secretary-general Halimah Yacob.

It is the latest move being adopted by the NTUC Women's Development Secretariat, which she heads, to help more women return to the workforce.

A related step is to ensure that there is better follow-up action once a job seeker links up with an employer, she told reporters after touring the jobs fair at the Employment and Employability Institute.

This means checking with employers if the women they shortlisted will need training - say in English literacy skills - and then helping put them through a relevant course, she explained.

On Friday, some 2,000 women turned up at the fair, which employers were seeking to fill 900 vacancies in jobs such as food and beverage crews, and retail assistants.

Among job seekers who turned up were retrenched factory workers, and housewives whose husbands had lost their jobs or suffered a pay cut.

- The Straits Times

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