Emily Patrick

epatrick@citizen-times.com

Will Roberts was working three part-time jobs in the fall of 2015, and they kept him busy for about 60 hours each week, but he wanted one full-time job.

Working three jobs was "fine," he said, and he didn't get discouraged by the long hours or his busy schedule, but he wanted benefits, such as health care.

The 26-year-old found a position as a loan closing specialist at HomeTrust Bank through the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce's annual job fair, which returns Jan. 18 at the WNC Agricultural Center.

With about 125 employers in attendance, finding a job wasn't hard, although it required preparation, Roberts said.

"When I started my job search, I had no idea how many jobs were actually available here locally," he said. “I went to the job fair, and I did do some preliminary work, but I talked to as many people as I could that day, and HomeTrust just happened to be the best option."

His advice to job seekers: Be prepared with well-proofed resumes, and dress nicely but comfortably. He handed out about 20 resumes and got two interviews out of the experience, he said.

“Be comfortable," he said. "It’s not something to get nervous. They’re looking for people. You’re looking for jobs.”

Employers who will attend the Jan. 18 event include national brands, nonprofits, fast-growing startups, local flagship brands, beer companies and more. The Biltmore Company, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Sierra Nevada Brewing, Mission Health, Mars Hill University, Annie's Bakery and Western North Carolina School of Massage are just a few of the participating employers.

HomeTrust Bank will return this year with part-time and full-time positions to fill. The bank is headquartered in Asheville, so it's looking for bankers as well as operations staff, said Sara Phillips, vice president and employee relations manager.

“We have openings available for people who are brand new to banking and very experienced bankers," she said. “I would say one thing (we look for) is a strong desire to deliver an outstanding level of customer service. That’s probably paramount in a lot of roles.”

Jeff Hayes of satellite communications company AvL Technologies said the quickly growing company will attend the job fair looking for specialized talent and community connections.

“At this point we’ll definitely be looking for engineers — product engineers, electrical engineers," he said. "Other than that, we like to keep our name in the limelight.”

Hayes and Phillips agreed: The Asheville labor market is rich for employers and job seekers. They said the labor pool is healthy. The Buncombe County unemployment rate was 3.7 percent in November, one of the lowest rates in the state.

Participating employers expect to seek employees for about 10,000 positions throughout 2017, many of those in the health care sector, according to the Chamber of Commerce, although not all of those positions will be local.

"We are always impressed with the caliber of the metro area employers, diversity of career opportunities and experienced talent that make this a successful event,” said Ben Teague, executive director of the Economic Development Coalition in a press release. “The annual Homecoming Career Fair remains a key recruiting event that matches our skilled workforce with high quality opportunities in many of our region’s top companies."

For job seekers looking to improve their odds of success, the career fair offers two professional development seminars focused on interviewing and job hunting for people over age 50.

The career fair runs 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Jan. 18 at the Davis Event Center at the WNC Agricultural Center in Fletcher. Seminars take place at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Registration is not required for job seekers. For more information, visit homecomingjobfair.com.