Vonnie Angelo, marketing representative for the Georgia Department of Labor, spoke to the Jones County Exchange Club last week and informed the members of a host of services offered by the agency.

As a marking representative for the government agency, Angelo works with local chambers of commerce, economic development agencies, civic groups, and visits schools to spread the word about what the GDOL has to offer.

She told club members at their July 16 meeting that the GDOL is thought of by many as strictly an unemployment office, and, although unemployment insurance benefits are handled by the agency, the department offers many other services to employers, employees, and communities.

According to its Web site, www.dol.state.ga.us, the agency was established in 1911. Known then as the Department of Commerce and Labor, it had broad authority over industrial and occupational safety and administration of labor laws. The Georgia General Assembly enacted the Employment Security Law in 1937, officially creating the GDOL. The agency was placed under control of an elected commissioner.

The agency provides a wide range of services to job seekers and employers. These include administration of the state’s unemployment insurance, employment service, and vocational rehabilitation programs; provision of work force information to the public and private sectors; inspection of boilers, pressure vessels, amusement park and carnival rides; and oversight of child labor issues.

The agency has a staff of over 4,000 under the leadership of State Labor Commissioner Michael L. Thurmond and has 53 local career centers and 53 vocational rehabilitation program offices throughout the state.

“We bring together businesses and applicants,” Angelo said. “Our goal is to help people find jobs and help employers find employees.”

One of the GDOL’s newest programs is the Georgia Work Ready Initiative launched in August 2006 by Gov. Sonny Perdue and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce to improve the training and marketability of Georgia’s work force and drive future economic development growth for the state.

Angelo said the program attracts companies to move to the state. In order to recruit new businesses, communities must demonstrate that they have a work force capable of filling new jobs.

“The Work Ready Initiative is designed to provide employers with documentation that we have a work force ready to meet their needs,” she added.

Angelo explained that the initiative is two fold, creating a Georgia Work Ready Certificate that will be recognized by the business community to validate that a worker’s skill and knowledge level meet the requirements of a specific job or occupation.

For communities, the goal is to provide a framework to document and validate that they have a work force in significant numbers capable of filling job opportunities. Demonstrating that a local work force has the right education and job training is critical to recruit new business and industry. More information about the initiative may be found at www.gaworkready.org.

Angelo said the Georgia Works program helps unemployed workers find a new job without putting their unemployment benefits in jeopardy. The program was created by the GDOL commissioner.

Georgia Works allows laid-off workers who qualify for unemployment insurance benefits to receive on-site workplace training while continuing to receive their regular unemployment benefits and a special training allowance. The allowance is intended to defray some of the costs associated with training, such as child care, transportation, tools, and work clothes.

Employers in the Georgia Works program provide training for a maximum of 24 hours per week for up to eight weeks. Upon successful completion, trainees receive certification of acquired job skills and will be considered for employment.

The program, in essence, allows businesses to audition potential employees and creates a transitional period between unemployment and employment.

“The GDOL covers the workers’ comp for the employee and reduces the employer’s tax burden. The program also reduces the risks to employees,” she said.

Angelo said 227 people living in Jones County are currently drawing unemployment insurance benefits. She said the Georgia Works program began in 2004 and from that time to July 2007 had 76 participants. The program is growing, however, and has already had 71 participants from July 2007 to date.

The Middle Georgia Employer Committee is an organization that is comprised of GDOL representatives and private employers in order to maintain a working relationship between the two.

The committee provides seminars such as a recent ‘Zero in on Safety’ and an upcoming ‘Boot Camp for Supervisors’. Money raised by the seminars is given back to the communities.

Angelo said finding jobs for veterans is a priority for the agency.

“Veterans have priority in every job,” she stated.

The GDOL and MGEC are sponsoring a Veterans Job Fair at the Museum of Aviation July 31 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Employers are invited to secure a table at the event for a fee of $85, and all veterans are invited to attend. Angelo said 70 employers have already registered.

For more information about the job fair, call 478-988-7130.