CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Goodwill Industries of the Kanawha Valley is planning a job fair for businesses impacted at the Elkview Crossings Mall following the June 2016 flood.
The job fair will be held July 19 at the Goodwill Prosperity Center on Virginia Street West in Charleston.
Businesses at the shopping center were forced to shutdown after the high water from the flood washed out the access bridge. Store closures resulted in hundreds of job losses.
Goodwill plans to reopen its Elkview store there. Employees were transferred to other Goodwill stores in the region. Kathy McKinley, director of community relations, said they hope to hire a new staff including 6-8 people.
“There is a need to hire and get the community back up and running at full speed,” McKinley said.
As of Friday, McDonald’s was the only business to sign up for the job fair. McKinley is encouraging more businesses to sign up, so people looking for jobs can have options.
“I think its pertinent for folks that are looking for jobs to be able to come and have a wide variety of availability at the same time. It’s very efficient,” she said.
A lot of these businesses are part of large corporations, so certain recruitment steps are necessary, McKinley said.
“A store that has a larger corporation some place else or is just a franchisee you have to go through the proper channels to get people on board,” she said.
The Elkview Crossings Mall is located off Interstate 79 in Kanawha County.
Work to rebuild a new bridge is currently underway.
For more information about the job fair, email Kathy McKinley at kmckinley@goodwillkv.com.