GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC) is hosting an event on Thursday in order to help give displaced Shopko workers some direction moving forward.
The event isn’t a job fair, but rather a resource fair.
Organizers want to caution displaced workers from rushing into the first available job they find.
Sarah Scharenbrock with NWTC says while it may make financial sense at first, the jobs luster can quickly wear off.
“And then they are kind of back in this cycle of either being disengaged where they are currently working or accepting something that isn’t ideal for them,” she explains.
She adds that this could actually be an opportunity for some to make a career path change.
If that decision requires additional schooling, admissions advisors will be available to fully explain their offerings.
Some of their programs are more extensive, while others can be completed in a number of weeks.
“If it’s just taking a course to get a certification to get them where they need to go,” says Scharenbrock.
The event is open to the public and organizers are expecting to encounter a wide range of professional backgrounds.
Scharenbrock notes that when Shopko announced their full closure it impacted a variety of workers, including those in retail, their distribution center, and corporate headquarters.
“It’s really across the board a very diverse group of individuals with such a unique background coming in,” she says.
The resource fair won’t only feature officials from NWTC, but also personnel from the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and Bay Area Workforce Development.
Those individuals can provide answers to a number of wide-ranging questions.
“If I need help with my mortgage, who do I contact?” she says. “I need help with this, who do I contact?”
The caseworkers from WIOA can also answer questions regarding eligibility requirements for displaced workers.
“There’s a ton of resources available, it can just be very, very difficult to figure out who do I contact if I need them,” explains Scharenbrock.
The resource fair starts at 9 A.M. and will remain open until 4 P.M.
It’s being held at the schools Green Bay campus and those interested in attending should enter the building from the main entrance.
