Back to school for many unemployed adults

After Glen Haidet was laid off from three jobs, the Mesa man joined hundreds of unemployed adults who are going back to school to find another career.

The 56-year-old worked with Chandler-Gilbert Community College’s Center for Workforce Development in June to get his pharmacy technician certificate.

He finished the 72-hour program in July, took the exam in August and got hired in September.

Haidet now works at Express Scripts Inc. in Tempe as a data-entry clerk, entering information from prescriptions and sending it out to be filled, packaged and sent to patient’s homes.

“I still have a lot of work to do. There’s a lot of information to know,” said Haidet, who has been married for 37 years and has a 24-year-old son. “It’s kind of a unique (career). It’s a totally different field (than my previous jobs).”

Haidet, who most recently worked for a company that tests silicon wafers, credits the college’s development center for helping him find another career. He qualified for free classes through federal job training funds available for adults and dislocated workers, said Ruth Romano, the center’s director.

The center, which moved to Sun Lakes in July, offers non-credit classes in more than 125 programs. Classes can be as short as a week to as long as six months and are offered online and at several campuses, such as the Maricopa Workforce Connection at Gilbert and Guadalupe roads in Gilbert and the Dobson Youth Center at Dobson and Guadalupe roads in Mesa.

Haidet is one of about 350 people who have signed up for the various programs this year, a sharp increase from 125 adults last year. The classes have all been full, many with adults who already have degrees and are just looking for certificates to move into new careers and many who are 50 and older, Romano said.

“It’s been overwhelming,” she said. “These are people that are educated, outstanding persons in their field, and yet companies just can’t make it. It’s very sad to talk to them.”

The programs include a new weeklong energy audit training, which starts in December. Students can learn how to evaluate homes and determine where to improve areas so as not to use as much energy.

One of the most popular programs is medical billing and coding, an online, 300-hour program students have up to six months to complete. Students who learn medical billing can work from home, at a doctor’s office or in a hospital, Romano said.

Unemployed adults can qualify for free training through Arizona Heat, a local workforce investment board listing funded through federal job training money. Adults with jobs who want to find another career can also sign up for classes, which cost an average of $1,500.

To get an edge on finding a new job, Romano recommends finding a job and volunteering in that field to get job experience and a letter of recommendation.

“I almost think we have to put ourselves out and do things differently to help us get a job,” she said.

“I think it’s time right now that we try to help each other,” Romano added. “It’s a difficult time for everyone right now.”

For more information, call the Maricopa Workforce Connections East Valley Career Center at (602) 372-9700 or visit www.maricopaworkforceconnection.com.