Mobile Resource Center Visits the Fair

The IowaWORKS Mobile Workforce Center is now parked on the Iowa State Fairgrounds and ready to assist any Iowans who want to obtain career advice alongside their stick-based nourishment.

“One of the benefits of having a resource like our Mobile Workforce Center is that we’re able to reach out to Iowans and educate them wherever they might be in their career journey,” said Linda Rouse, administrator of the division at Iowa Workforce Development that oversees Iowa’s American Job Centers. “You don’t have to drive to one of our offices to get your questions answered or the assistance you need. We have resources to meet you where you are.

“For the next 10 days, we’re essentially going to have an IowaWORKS office on wheels parked next to the western end of the Sky Glider,” she said. “If you’re thinking about a new career or have questions about work-based learning or training, come see us.”

IWD launched the Mobile Workforce Center earlier this year to serve as a Rapid Response vehicle, as well as to expand the reach of IowaWORKS by providing services to areas distant from a physical IowaWORKS office. Since then, the 32-foot-long vehicle has been responding to a wide variety of challenges across the state.

The Mobile Workforce Center visited 10 communities over the past month, most of which were dealing with the impacts of severe storms and flooding in June and July. Outside of the weather, the mobile center responded to three manufacturing plants in Des Moines and Perry to help workers who had been laid off prepare for their next careers.

More trips to Northwest Iowa are in the works, as well as ongoing efforts to assist workers facing career challenges.