OhioMeansJobsǀCleveland-Cuyahoga County (OMJ/CC), a collaborative workforce system between the City of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County that works with both local employers and job seekers, has partnered with Dave’s Markets to hold Community Outreach events in Dave’s grocery throughout October to help job seekers find training and employment.

Job coaches will be on hand to help job seekers find employment, learn about training opportunities, and advance their careers through a wide range of employers.

“Anyone in Cuyahoga County can come to us for a job or for training for a job,” says Frank Brickner, OMJ/CC interim executive director. “The big challenge for us right now is many, many employers have job openings. Our hospitals are struggling right now, and it doesn’t have to be nursing [jobs]—there are nursing assistants and equipment sterilizers. And manufacturers have good open positions right now too.”

Brickner says teaming with Dave’s Markets seemed like a logical way to attract job seekers. “Everyone goes to the grocery store,” he says. “We have many great job openings in the community, but we need to find the right people.”

Job seekers are encouraged to attend the events and work with coaches about a variety of positions with Dave’s, Greater Cleveland RTA, I Schumann, Novagard, Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, MetroHealth Medical Center, Rockwell Automation, Swagelok, Consolidated Precision Products, and ATI Aviation.

“This is a great way to get our job coaches out into the community, where they can help people in the most convenient way possible,” says Brickner.

OMJ/CC receives federal funding from the U.S. Department of Labor to train people for fields they may be interested in and place them in good jobs. Brickner says job seekers interested in training for a career can receive up to $8,500 in funding for training in Information Technology, $7,500 in funding to train at Cuyahoga Community College for jobs in healthcare or manufacturing, and $6,000 in funding in other fields.

“$7,500 goes a long way for a training program,” Brickner says. “If someone wants to be a nursing assistant or a CNC machinist—working with the computer that runs the robot—our funding is typically enough to pay for the whole thing.”

Additionally, Brickner adds that OMJ/CC staff will work with candidates who already have training or need jobs that are close to their homes. “Some people just want to work, and we can find them jobs,” he says. “If transportation is an issue we will find employers in their neighborhood.”

The events kick off this Saturday, Oct. 2 and run through Saturday, Oct. 23. Career coach teams will be at different Dave’s locations from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The locations include:

Saturday, Oct. 2
Dave’s Ohio City, 2700 Carroll Ave.
Dave’s Mercado, 3565 Ridge Road
Lucky’s Market, 11620 Clifton Blvd., Edgewater

Saturday, Oct. 9
Dave’s Richmond Heights, 5100 Wilson Mills Road
Dave’s at Turneytown, 4948 Turney Road, Garfield Heights
Dave’s at Severance Town Center, 3628 Mayfield Road, Cleveland Heights
Dave’s at Shore Center, 22501 Shore Center Drive, Euclid

Saturday, Oct. 16
Dave’s in Midtown, 1929 East 61^st St.
Dave’s at Harvard and Lee, 16820 Harvard Ave.
Dave’s on Cedar Hill, 12438 Cedar Road, Cleveland Heights
Dave’s in Slavic Village, 7422 Harvard Ave.

Saturday, Oct. 23
Dave’s at Euclid Beach, 15900 Lakeshore Blvd.
Dave’s at Shaker Square, 13130 Shaker Square