A host of tents peppered a small parking lot behind Solano Town Center Tuesday, featuring a host of resources for the formerly incarcerated.
For about three hours, any client considered “involved with the justice system” was invited to come on over and meet businesses seeking employees and establishments offering everything from medical care to educational and training opportunities.
Amanda Owens with GEO Reentry Services said this job and resource fair was the inaugural one for Solano County.
“We got a lot of parolees when we first started so it’s going really well,” she said about halfway through the event.
The idea was to provide former offenders with another tool towards being welcomed back into the community, another way to stave off recidivism.
For those who have been incarcerated for a long time, the world has changed, Owens said. There’s much to be acclimated to, such as the internet, cell phones, applying for jobs online and more.
“Some people may not even be able to use a computer,” she explained. “It could be intimidating.”
That’s on top of the stigma of having a criminal record, related low confidence issues and a potential lack of social skills.
So, prior to the job fair, those who are GEO clients have not only brushed up on communication skills but taken a hard look at why they want to be employed and what that might look like to them.
GEO, Owens said, tailors their programs to their clients, of which there are 30 at a time at the Fairfield-based day reporting center. Programs may include substance abuse and anger management classes, parenting, life skills and more, all funded by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Consider the job fair, if you will, another step in the right direction.
Interested applicants milled around the vendor tables, talking to potential employers, like Goodwill of the Greater East Bay, and putting in applications.
Parole Agent Joey Moreno described the event as a positive one.
“It shows them we have resources for them to succeed,” he said, adding that it also shows that the community supports them.
Some of the jobs offer great training and good pay, he continued.
Parole Agent Juan Cisneros agreed.
He had invited clients who are already employed to come take a look at what’s out there.
“Even if you have a job, you might find a better job,” he said.
The partnership with GEO, Moreno added, is key.
Clients will have access to all types of resources that can help them back on their feet, he said, and keep them moving in a positive direction.
“Eventually they realize, ‘we can really do this,’” he said.
He added that the fair is an opportunity to show a different side of the client-parole department relationship.
“We’re not here to put cuffs on them. We’re here to help them,” he emphasized.
“It’s just pushing them in the right direction,” Cisneros pointed out.
Owens shared an important fact.
“Everyone here believes in second chances,” she said.
For his part, Ken Miller with the International Association of Ironworkers said he’s looking for hundreds of people willing to work and work hard.
“I want people that will show up every day and show up on time,” he said. “Dependable.”
The work is hard, he said, but the training is good and the pay is pretty good, too. Apprentices start at about $14 an hour and a journeyman can make up to $37 an hour.
“We get a lot of guys who’ve made mistakes,” he said.
But if you’re ready to get your life together and are willing to commit to the job, give him a call.
Applicants must be 18, have a GED or high school diploma and be ready to do the work.
Interested? Call 746-7666.
For more information on GEO Reentry Services, call 428-6057.
