Musa Fann and Nikki Thompson have been struggling to find work since their recent move to Parkville from Washington. The couple often heads to their local library, where they can use computers to search for jobs.
As they walked through Hillendale Shopping Center on Wednesday, Fann, 33, and Thompson, 35, made a side trip to the Baltimore County-run Baltimore Mobile Career Center, where county workers offered individual counseling.
"I am praying they will help us," Thompson said. "I am hoping my experience helps."
The mobile center is making its way into some of Baltimore County's most economically distressed neighborhoods, after it spent its early months making the rounds of county parole and probation divisions and the detention center to help ex-convicts with re-entry. County officials said people with convictions on their records face mounting difficulties, but many other residents in areas with high unemployment can also take advantage of the service.
Grace Fendlay, manager of special programs for the county's Workforce Development Systems, introduced Fann and Thompson to three counselors, who immediately went to work, helping their newest clients log on to computers, fill out numerous forms, sign up for workshops and take steps to employment.
Baltimore County put job searching on wheels six months ago with the $330,000 mobile career center. A federal grant helped the county's Office of Workforce Development purchase and outfit the 29-foot Ford truck with six computer stations, as well as telephones and fax machines. At least three counselors work with clients in the center.
Last month, the staff added Hillendale and Lansdowne shopping centers to its schedule — sites chosen for visibility, proximity to bus routes and high vehicle and pedestrian traffic.
Hillendale had 14 visitors last month and Lansdowne, scheduled for a second visit Aug. 25, had 33. The staff can handle more at both locations, which sit at the center of communities experiencing poverty and crime, officials said.
From the van, Fendlay keeps a constant eye on the parking lot and will go outside to gently coax those reluctant to approach.
"They see the truck and they obviously are wondering what is going on," she said. "I just try to get them on board."
Visitors arrived throughout the five-hour stay at Hillendale. Emanuel Moaney, a re-entry transition specialist, told the story of a 50-year-old woman who said she had never been convicted of a crime. Knowing most employers would do a background check, Moaney wanted to be sure. A check of court records turned up a long-forgotten drug possession charge from 1986.
"It's been a long time and she had truly forgotten, but it meant she would have to say 'yes' if an employer asked," Moaney said.
Moaney also has a client with a misdemeanor charge for stealing toilet paper from a previous employer, and is helping a young women who had received probation before judgment five years ago for an assault charge. All three would face hurdles in a job search, Moaney said. Nothing sends an application to the reject pile faster than a check in the convictions box, Fendlay said.
"Our message to employers is not to screen these people out but, instead, look at their positives," she said. "See if the charges are relevant to the position they are offering. Some people have been employed 20 years with a great work history and have lost their jobs in this economy. They have skills, talent and experience."
In a market with one job for every five seekers, Findlay coaches clients on interview skills and advises them to be upfront and honestly discuss their backgrounds.
"Every year, about 750,000 prisoners are released in this country, and most float to the bottom of the jobs market," Findlay said. "If they can be employed within three months, recidivism drops off the map."
The center screens all applicants, helps them hone interview techniques, makes sure their skills match a job and continues to work with them and the employer, she said. The county uses federal funds to offer incentives for employers willing to hire an ex-convict. Among those is a six-month fidelity bond, which is in addition to the $5,000 state tax credit offered this year for companies that hire any person for a newly created position.
Six other job seekers visited the van Wednesday and stayed an average of 90 minutes each. They enrolled in various work-force programs, worked on resumes, did electronic job searches and learned a little about "what looking for a job in the 21st century is like," said Findlay.
For more information, visit http://www.mwejobs.com or call (410) 288-9050 or (410) 887-7940.
mary.gail.hare@baltsun.com