
The Public Safety sector has been hurting for workers for quite some time now, and Lakeshore Technical College is trying to change that trend.
Wednesday afternoon, at their Cleveland Campus, LTC is hosting a Public Safety Career Fair, in an attempt to get people excited about a career as a police officer, firefighter, or EMT.
We spoke with Lou Richard, the Criminal Justice Program Coordinator, who said that especially with police, it has been a rough road getting people excited about working in the public sector.
He explained that the benefits used to be a big draw for people, but now “They are equal to what people get in the private sector.”
Another big reason for the downturn interest is the negative press law enforcement has received over the past several years.
“I think everybody still loves the firefighters and EMTs,” Richard stated. “But law enforcement is having to work a little harder now to get that respect.”
At the Career Fair on Wednesday, Richard said there are will be roughly 30 entities coming that are looking for workers.
He said that police, fire, and rescue will be on hand as well as the U.S. Army, as well as some security companies, including Kohler and hospital security companies.
While everyone is welcome to come apply for different positions within these companies, they are looking for what Richard terms “special candidates”.
“They are not gonna hire everyone that applies, but hey are looking for a good pool of people that they can work through.”
The Public Safety Career Fair will run from 4:00 to 7:00 PM in Centennial Hall at the LTC Campus in Cleveland, which is located at 1290 North Avenue, just off Highway 43.