Job hunters filled nearly every inch of the Vicksburg Convention Center on Tuesday for this year’s job fair, and organizers viewed the attendance as a result of worsening employment figures statewide and nationally.

More than 2,000 people applied for jobs with 70 local and national employers. Organizers said 717 job offers were made on the spot. Attendance was up for the second year — above last year’s by about 400 — a fact seen as “good and bad” by organizers.

“Since the start of the year, I was looking to see what (attendance) would be,” said Joe Buckner of the Mississippi Department of Employment Security and director of the job fair network, referring to ripple effects of the recession on the state’s job picture. “I’ve been pleasantly surprised.” 

Unemployment in Mississippi stood at 9.8 percent in June, up a tenth of a percent from May. In Warren County, the rate was 9.9 percent — unchanged from May, but up strongly from last June’s 8.6 percent. Nationally, unemployment was up a tenth of a percent for June at 9.5 percent.

In more specific numbers, the MDES July report shows a labor force, generally people wanting work, of 22,860 people in Warren County and 20,590 with jobs. Inside Vicksburg, the MDES calculates 11,750 people available for work and 9,910 with jobs for a municipal jobless rate of 15.6 percent.

Several large employers here have shut down or limited operations since the recession began, putting hundreds of people out of work.

Traditionally, the state has attributed movement in summer unemployment numbers with a glut of students seeking seasonal jobs. Among various new segments to the ranks of the unemployed has been military personnel returning from overseas, many of whom often live with parents following deployments, said Chris Carey of MDES a coordinator of Mississippi Troops to Teachers, part of a nationwide initiative to encourage soldiers to become teachers.

“We have a number of veterans returning from active duty looking for work,” Carey said.

Some arrived with self-imposed deadlines before deciding on a direction, including Tavares Wilson, 26, Vicksburg, who said he will join the military if he doesn’t find a private sector job by October.

Participating employers in this year’s job fair included casinos, retail outlets and state and local government. Federal employers included the FBI and the Transportation Safety Administration. The number of job offers made was up from 415 in 2008.

“That’s a lot of people that were in here,” said Nathan Kirkley, 20, after visits to booths set up by the Mississippi Air National Guard. Another Vicksburg resident, Ashley Griffith, 28, said she applied to several local casinos.

The state’s job fairs have been held each August by organizers with MDES, the Office of the Governor and the Mississippi Development Authority. Eleven such fairs were scheduled statewide in 2009, with fairs upcoming in Corinth, Columbus and Southaven. A listing can be found at www.jobfairs.ms.gov.

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Contact Danny Barrett Jr. at dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com