Zsa Smith, right, and Conseatta Stewart, both of Vicksburg, fill out job applications during the Vicksburg Area Job Fair Tuesday.(Meredith Spencer The Vicksburg Post)

[8/4/04]Not everyone is cut out to kick back after retirement, and at least one person attending Vicksburg’s Job Fair on Tuesday was one of them looking for work.

The sixth annual fair opened at the Vicksburg Convention Center with nearly 200 people waiting outside. Inside, and all during the day, about 62 employers took applications and conducted interviews, said Joe Buckner, director of the Governor’s Job Fair Network.

Among those seeking a job was Ernest Regan Jr. who retired July 1 as an auditor for the Mississippi Department of Human Services. He was looking for an administrative job, accounting or some similar type of office work, and was confident the job fair would work for him.

“I have (put in) three applications this morning. They said they would get back in touch with me,” he said.

Turnout was down for the second year in a row, signaling more people are working in jobs they like and/or finding an easier time getting jobs. The local fairs have seen as many as 3,000 to 3,500 people looking for jobs. By 2003, the turnout was down to about 2,000 and about 1,600 signed up Tuesday.

Bennie Terrell of the local office of the Mississippi Employment Security Commission said there could be multiple reasons for the lower numbers “It could be the job market is better,” he said.

Indeed, the unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in the year more than 3,000 applicants went to the fair, compared with 5.8 percent for Warren County last month.

Terrell said it could also depend on the mix of employers taking applications, pointing out the Nissan plant in Canton attracted large numbers when it was hiring at job fairs.

Buckner said there has been an emphasis on preparing people for job searches.

“We offered a class at Hinds Community College and we had about 15 attend to learn how to write a resume, how to dress and what to do,” he said, adding it would be good for more people to take similar classes.

He also said job opportunities were diverse.

“I have been amazed at the job opportunities,” he said, pointing out there were nine health-care businesses, alone, at the job fair.

Brandy Jones of Vicksburg was looking for a better and more permanent job than she had with one of the huge chain retailers located in Vicksburg.

“I’m looking for a cashier’s position or sales person,” she said.

Willie Redfield of McComb has a little different story. After a hitch in the U.S. Navy, he returned to Mississippi and went to Jackson State University were he recently graduated. Although this won’t be his first job, it will be his first out of college.

“I’m looking for something in law enforcement, security or corrections,” he said.

Lab work, running analyses of chemicals, was what Sue Barnes of Vicksburg said she was looking for since she had spent four years working for an oil company.

“I’ve got one place where I’ve sent a resume today,” she said.

“We are pleased with the numbers that have been in to pick up applications,” said Margaret Gilmer, manager of Vicksburg Factory Outlets.

Going on past experience, she said they usually pick up several good applicants who can be picked up by the stores at the outlet center.

Rose Wilson, who was helping staff the booth from the Isle of Capri Hotel and Casino, said they were also pleased with the variety of applicants and the experience they could bring to the Isle staff.

“We have positions available for security, front desk, supervisors” and others, she said.