CareerLink online system upgraded to help employers, job hopefuls
August 8, 2018
To make the job-search process more convenient, the state Department of Labor & Industry is enhancing the PA CareerLink online system.
Labor and Industry Secretary Jerry Oleksiak announced Tuesday L&I is aligning the online job-matching system, used by employers and job seekers, to PA CareerLink offices. This streamlining is intended to help employers and would-be employees identify and access employment and training services the department offers.
Some services, previously available only in brick-and-mortar locations, now can be accessed on a computer.
“Our administration realizes that not everyone can come physically into our offices,” said Lisa Neil, president of Southwest Training Services, the Washington-based operator of the CareerLink system in this corner of the state.
“They want to make online services more user friendly, which is really important because we want to better match employers with candidates.”
Neil lamented a number of employers have difficulty finding “enough quality workers,” and that with an improved “online system, people can register for events anywhere in the state. There are workshops they can easily manage in their homes. They can practice the Big Interview (a training site).”
L&I listed a half-dozen current and future enhancements:
- Better matching of employers and job candidates with specific skill sets;
- Job seekers having more control over who views their résumés;
- Online referral system to better connect customers to community support services;
- Increased sharing across state agencies;
- More job postings;
- Increased vetting capabilities for posted jobs.
Oleksiak said in a prepared statement: “I continually see positive results that growing employers can attain when partnering with PA CareerLink to connect with a well-skilled workforce. Gov. Tom Wolf recognizes the importance of partnerships between state agencies and workforce development professionals to achieve this goal, and that’s why L&I is focusing on customer-based enhancements to the PA CareerLink system.”
Neil likes the changes.
“It’s a comprehensive system,” she said. “I think it’s a more informative system.”