WorkOne is a local nonprofit organization designed to help people find employment.

Inside the building at 715 S. Buffalo St., applicants can search for job openings throughout the country on the Internet.

Juan Manigault, Work One's president and chief executive officer, was in Warsaw last week to talk about the newly created, 16-member Northern Indiana Workforce Board. Reduced from a group of 52 individuals, Manigault expects decisions and planning to be executed in a more timely fashion.

"If all 52 members took 30 seconds to introduce themselves," he said, "nearly half an hour would be taken up during an hour and a half meeting. Now the board can focus on economic development and the future."

George Clemens of Warsaw and Avis Gunter of Claypool serve on the board as Kosciusko County representatives.

Melissa Blue and Wendy Hatcher work in the Warsaw office.

Prospective job-seekers must undergo an orientation presented each Tuesday, they said.

"When people lose their jobs it's an emotional experience," Blue said. "The orientation lets them think about their skills, their transferrable skills for their next job."

Manigault said 800 people found jobs through WorkOne in the last year.

Warsaw is part of WorkForce Development's Region 2, or the five-county area of St. Joseph, Elkhart, Kosciusko, Fulton and Marshall counties.

Statistics show 97 percent of the people who live in northern Indiana work in northern Indiana.

"WorkOne intends to build relationships with employers to get people to work here," Manigault said. "Employers have the opportunity to access training grants."

The group recently secured a $400,000 grant in conjunction with Ivy Tech to develop a vocational skills center.

"Most jobs only require a two-year associate's degree," he said. "That's the wave of the future."

On the Net:

www.workone.com [[In-content Ad]]