A speed dating event to improve the confidence and interviewing skills of job seekers has been held at the Country Club in Launceston.
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Similar to speed dating, employers sat on one side of the table and job-seekers on the other.
In three-minute sessions, jobseekers had exposure to a variety of employers, whilst practising their interview skills.
David Murray was one of the attendees seeking a job.
With severe osteoarthritis in his hip, Mr Murray has had difficulty finding work.
He also confesses to being a nervous person who does not enjoy talking on the phone.
But after Wednesday’s interviewing event the well-spoken man felt the world was his oyster.
“It was absolutely brilliant, I thought it was a great,” he said.
“I think I had a very successful day, I have a few leads.”
Mr Murray said his disability had affected how he thought of himself.
“I’ve had to change my outlook on what type of work I can do,” he said.
“I used to do a lot of hands-on, heavy-stores handling.
“Instead of making it [his disability] a hindrance I look at it as being a part of who I am.”
Mr Murray said the event gave him the opportunity to expand his mind and look at a diverse range of areas for employment.
“Normally I’d do outside manual stuff, but anything I think will grasp my mind, I’ll try,” he said.
“I was nervous at first but then sitting down and talking away was brilliant.”
In one-and-a-half hours 500 interviews were conducted between 24 employers and 28 employees.
Launceston WISE employment business manager Mandy Beams said the event was about giving job seekers the ability to connect with prospective employers.
“We had lots of diversity in businesses, we had community services, hospitality and we covered off retail,” she said.
Ms Beams said businesses would now consider the applicants to determine if they would like to communicate further.
“We meet with employers to discuss people that they’ve met today and they’re interested in having a further conversation with or interested into employing,” she said.
“There’s got to be one person today that they would have seen that might be good for their business.”
At the event there was a mix of young and mature-aged people looking for employment.
Ms Beams said September was a busy season for employers who were generally looking for people to hire
Last year 11 job seekers were able to find opportunities as a result of the event.