Assisting a Displaced Workforce During COVID-19

KentuckianaWorks and Greater Louisville Inc. (GLI) have launched an initiative to support displaced workers and provide employers with assistance as they navigate this unprecedented pandemic. 

Our region is home to a robust hospitality industry which has been particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 crisis. We knew we had to step up to the table and work with our partners to offer innovative and rapid-response solutions. We have developed a two-pronged approach that supports both workers who have been affected and local employers.

The first tactic is to provide a one-stop-shop for job seekers. We have created a new online job board listing current job opportunities in the area. Companies can log on and post critical positions. We are also pulling opportunities our employer survey and strategic outreach to employers.  These opportunities are updated daily.

We anticipate that our site will allow employers to fill positions more quickly given that we are directing recently unemployed individuals to the site. Staff are reaching out to companies who are laying off workforce to promote the job board. We are urging employers to pass the resource along to their displaced workforce driving traffic to the site. There will be a significant number of job seekers utilizing this site to find immediate opportunities. This makes the site an ideal recruitment tool for companies who are ramping up hiring due to COVID-19.

The second tactic is to connect HR professionals at companies who are laying off workforce with HR professionals at companies who are hiring. This allows companies who are forced to downsize to support their employees during this challenging situation. It also allows employers who are hiring to tap into an already vetted quality talent pool. An example of this would be a hotel chain that has to let go of 60 people might be connected with a hospital that needs building service team members. The HR director of the hotel can pass long resumes and names to facilitate an even faster rapid response to critical workforce needs. We are considering skills, competencies and hiring requirements as we match employers and facilitate these strategic connections.

There are multiple benefits to this unique service and our dual approach to solving COVID-19 workforce issues. Our HR connections strategy and our job board prevent job seekers from filing for unemployment and overwhelming the system. It also mitigates a bottleneck effect at local career service centers. This initiative will allow us to fill jobs quickly, especially those that serve an essential function in our community during this time.