Thousands of Minnesotans who lost their jobs during the early days of the pandemic got a helpful call from CareerForce to assist them determining their next steps. Staff from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development called more than 100,000 unemployed Minnesotans between March 2021 and March 2022. As a result of those calls, 42,000 Minnesotans utilized CareerForce resources – from uploading their resume, to participating in an online job search workshop to getting 1:1 assistance from a CareerForce specialist. Whenever possible, DEED staff helped connect job seekers they called with employers in their area who were hiring.

In addition to providing job search assistance, the calls also provided a human connection during a very disorienting time for many people. Even as jobs came back after pandemic restrictions loosened, often open positions were in different industries or required different skillsets than the positions people worked in prior to the pandemic. The Good Jobs Now calls provided people encouragement – and raised new awareness about valuable career exploration tools, training opportunities and other resources available to Minnesotans needing to prepare for and find new employment. Staff making these calls reported that many of the people they connected with were not previously aware of the services available to them.

Thank you to all the DEED Employment Service Program staff and Unemployment Insurance staff who made the calls and provided information to Minnesotans during the pandemic through the Good Jobs Now initiative!