Looking for a job?
The City of Houston says the welcome mat is out, and there are jobs available for the taking for qualified residents.
Texas County’s unemployment rate was pegged at 5.8 percent in April. That represents 559 who were drawing some form of jobless benefits.
“We need to get the word out that there are jobs here,” said City Administrator Larry Sutton.
Among those seeking employees are two big local firms — The Durham Co. and Houston Walmart Supercenter. The Durham Co. is located on North Industrial Drive at the Houston Industrial Park. It’s about to break ground on an expanded south plant, adding another 28,000 square feet, according to a building permit. Penmac takes its job applications. About 200 are employed at two plants at the park. A sign off a West Highway 17 entrance notes the need for workers.
Tim Massey, CEO of Springfield-based Penmac that operates in about two dozen Missouri communities, says numerous jobs in manufacturing are available in southwest Missouri. “There are tons of jobs available in southwest Missouri, especially in manufacturing,” said Massey, who notes the country currently has the lowest unemployment rate since 2000 and the lowest number of Americans without jobs since 1973. “Finding good quality workers is really a challenge for everyone. I don’t know how a company does it on its own.”
Walmart is situated at Holder Drive and South Sam Houston Blvd. Payroll numbers about 180 depending on the time of the year. Just last week, there were 18 slots available. By Monday, that had dropped to 10. Those seeking a job go online at careers.walmart.com to apply, said manager Travis Rector.
At the city’s largest employer, Texas County Memorial Hospital, there were 11 employment opportunities on Monday.
Eleven employment ads appeared in last week’s newspapers.