February 12, 2013

Jobs and the economy are once again a focus of the President's State of Union address.

They are issues that continue to be very important in the Volunteer State.
  
When it comes to finding employment, education can be essential.

"It just kicked off today, this is our first class," says Jamie Berry with Goodwill.

Goodwill has a new program called "Beyond Jobs" at its career solutions center downtown.
 
It's geared toward women who are unemployed.  The women are learning financial literacy skills.

"Rejection, after rejection, and feeling really hopeless," says Linda Eppers.

Linda Eppers has been looking for work for a year.
    
She says before getting help at Goodwill, she dreaded the search.

"There are so many people out there taking the entry level office positions that have college degrees," says Eppers.

Competition has been fierce but there are signs of improvement.

Goodwill has seen a positive trend lately. More people are being hired...nearly 300 last month compared to just 195 in January 2012.

State unemployment figures also indicate a positive trend.
 
The rate is currently the lowest it has been since 2008.

Goodwill counselors are seeing more companies hiring.
  
So far this year 23 job fairs have been planned, or have already been held.

Quita Thornton hopes she'll find a job of her own.

"It has been a real hard balance trying to find stability again when I've been out of the workforce for so long," says Thornton.

The hope is that education will play a role in getting people back to work, and give the women attending class the confidence to find a career.

Goodwill helped more than 16,000 Middle Tennesseans last year at its career solutions centers.
        
If you'd like help finding a job, call Goodwill at (615) 742-4151.
For news updates follow John Dunn on twitter @WZTVJohnDunn
Focus On Jobs Resonates in Tennessee - John Dunn