More than 30,000 job opportunities will be up for grabs Thursday when U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne hosts the fifth North Texas Job Fair at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
Van Duyne discussed the August 6 event during an appearance on Let’s Talk Local with Sarah Zubiate Bennett. She said more than 550 employers are expected to participate in what her office describes as the nation’s largest single-day, multi-industry hiring event.
The free job fair runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Globe Life Field, 734 Stadium Drive. Job seekers can register online and should bring resumes, comfortable walking shoes and a phone to access employers’ QR codes.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, registration opened June 1 with 300 businesses representing about 10,000 jobs. In the two months since, those totals have climbed to more than 550 employers and 30,000 opportunities.
Pandemic response grows into major hiring event
Van Duyne’s office launched the job fair in 2021 after hearing from employers struggling to hire and workers who had lost jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first fair drew several thousand people when organizers had expected several hundred, Van Duyne said. Attendance reached more than 35,000 last year. Organizers added another concourse level this year as employer participation exceeded expectations.
Employers are recruiting across energy, education, healthcare, manufacturing, law enforcement, administration and other industries. Openings range from entry-level work to C-suite positions, including jobs for attorneys and physicians.
Van Duyne said nearly 30% of the jobs offered last year paid at least $100,000.
“These are real jobs representing real opportunities for North Texans,” Van Duyne said. She described the fair as a way to recapture the “magic as a mayor” of affecting someone’s life that day.
A mayor’s approach to Congress
Van Duyne, who served as Irving’s mayor from 2011 to 2017, said local government often allowed her to produce results more quickly than Congress.
“As a mayor, you can get a lot more done,” she said.
During freshman orientation, Van Duyne said she was advised to treat her congressional district the way a mayor treats a city. She said the message matched her emphasis on remaining connected to North Texas instead of becoming consumed by Washington headlines.
Her office helps constituents with expired passports, veterans’ benefits, small-business loans and problems involving federal agencies. Van Duyne said that work is a larger part of congressional service than many voters realize.
“This is our job. And I take that very, very seriously,” she said.
Van Duyne also highlighted her Washington, D.C., Family Fly-In, which gives North Texas children and parents personalized educational experiences that can include Capitol tours, embassy visits and White House tours.
She recalled a mother who said she initially feared her son would be treated differently because the family was Democratic. After the trip, the woman thanked Van Duyne’s office for treating the family with respect and said she would vote for the congresswoman.
Van Duyne said treating constituents as people rather than members of a political party is central to her office’s approach.
AI changes jobs, but relationships still matter
Van Duyne said artificial intelligence will reshape jobs but argued that previous technological advances changed work without eliminating opportunity.
“You can’t stop the technology,” she said. “It is coming. It is here.”
She encouraged students and job seekers to become comfortable with AI while continuing to develop the human skills technology cannot replace.
“Relationships matter. How you treat people matters,” Van Duyne said. “They probably are the most valuable part of any kind of skill, is your network.”
The full conversation is available on the podcast. The North Texas Job Fair is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at Globe Life Field. Admission is free.
Provided by Dallas Express
