Coronavirus News: Amid record unemployment, these businesses are hiring in tri-state area

ByKristin Thorne WABC logo

Thursday, May 14, 2020

Amid record unemployment, these businesses are hiring

Kristin Thorne reports the economic outlook in the tri-state may not be as grim as it looks as many companies are looking to hire.

LONG ISLAND (WABC) -- The economic outlook in the tri-state may not be as grim as it looks as many companies are looking to hire.

From pharmacies to grocery stores to construction companies -- businesses are trying to fill positions.

American Regent, for example, which manufactures sterile injectable medicines to treat the critically ill, is looking to fill 40 long-term jobs at its Shirley facility and 10 positions at its Melville administrative office.

"All these positions are permanent positions and we hope people can build a real long-term career at American Regent," said company CEO Ken Keller.

Keller said the jobs available include production and packaging, laboratory quality control, research and development, engineering, commercial operations, business development, portfolio management and sales.

Most of the positions require a GED or high school diploma, while others require a bachelor's or advanced degree. All positions are eligible for benefits, including medical, dental and vision insurance, short and long-term disability insurance and a generous paid-time off policy.

Interested applicants should visit here.

According to website CareerBuilder.com, the top jobs available in the tri-state area are registered nurses, software developers, home health aides, truck drivers, sales managers and front-line supervisors of retail sales workers.

"Companies are hiring and the data shows that," said CareerBuilder Talent Acquisition Lead Brandi Frattini.

Vitamin and health supplements manufacturer The Nature's Bounty Company, based in Ronkonkoma, is looking to bring on 250 new workers for full-time, part-time and temporary positions based on Long Island and at the company's manufacturing facility in Leonia.

"We've certainly seen demand rise as a result of the pandemic. People are very engaged in their health in a way that they perhaps may not have been before, so we continue to hire. We expect to hire throughout the next couple of months," said Nature's Bounty Chief Administrative Officer Amy von Walter.

Von Walter said the positions the company is looking to fill range from entry-level, which require no background in manufacturing, to more experienced positions like maintenance mechanics and forklift operators.

More information on the open job positions can be found here.

Even some nonprofit organizations are hiring.

Life's WORC, which supports people with intellectual disabilities and autism in Nassau, Suffolk and Queens, has 37 job openings ranging from group home aides to medical counselors and assistant program managers.

Life's WORC CEO Janet Koch said the opportunities come with an attractive benefits package including health insurance.

"We offer dental insurance as part of that package, we have tuition reimbursement, we have a master's degree program," she said.

New York State is also looking to recruit thousands of contact tracers. That application is located here.

Grocery store chain Uncle Giuseppe's has dozens of open positions across Long Island and in Ramsey and Yorktown Heights. More information can be found here.

CVS has thousands of job openings including for cashiers, store managers and pharmacists.

With unemployment at an all-time high in our area, many people have already filed for unemployment benefits. Filing for unemployment, however, does not mean you can't get a job.

"It's just really about having the attitude that there is opportunity out there," Frattini said. "We see that right now from candidates that it's really easy to get in a negative space and you don't want to go there and you don't want to bring that to the interview or the hiring process."

Frattini said people who were laid off should not make losing their job the primary focus during a job interview. She said job applicants should emphasize the positive things they have been doing during this time.

"Maybe you're able to tutor your neighbor's children virtually and help out in that aspect. Maybe you're able to make meals and deliver those to healthcare workers. There's always some positivity that you can bring to these situations," Frattini said.

CareerBuilder has thousands of jobs listed in its database on its website at www.careerbuilder.com. The trending searches on the site include "COVID," "warehouse," "work from home," "Amazon" and "remote."