Express Employment Professionals Host Holiday Hiring Drive, Giving the Gift of Employment

OKLAHOMA CITY, Dec. 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Express Employment Professionals, the nation's largest, privately held staffing company, will join together to pay it forward this holiday season by putting an additional 9,612 people to work. To reach this goal, 172 Express offices across the United States and Canada are partnering with job seekers and area businesses that are looking to hire seasonal workers. The Pay It Forward Holiday Hiring Drive will take place during various weeks during the holidays, depending on each individual office.  

"To us, 'pay it forward' means working with local communities across the country to help connect the unemployed with area businesses in need of extra support this season," said Bob Funk, CEO and chairman of the board of Express. "Our goal is to lock arms with job seekers in an effort to bring hope to families for the holidays and help businesses find quality workers to handle the upswing during this time of year."

Express offices from coast to coast will participate in the hiring drive, each setting an individual goal and honoring the campaign in different ways. Several offices are partnering with local charities, making a donation to charity for every person they place in a job.

Three Express offices in Pittsburgh, for example, started their hiring drive on Nov. 15 and hope to put 200 people to work by Dec. 29. Pittsburgh area franchisees Karen Mokwa, Deb Gray and Gary Schwartz are taking advantage of the Express Pay It Forward Holiday Hiring Drive by teaming with Make-A-Wish^®. For every new associate placed, the Pittsburgh Express offices will donate $25 to the local Make-A-Wish^® chapter. The group's goal is to raise a total of $3,900, enough to grant a wish for one child in the Pittsburgh community.

The Miami Lakes, Fla. Express office plans to put 50 unemployed individuals to work this holiday season. For each new worker that is placed, Express will donate $25 to the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, where 100 percent of the funds raised will benefit Miami Children's Hospital and their nine outpatient centers, including Miami Lakes.

By joining Express in this hiring effort, employers will gain a qualified worker and give the gift of employment to an individual who would otherwise not be working during the holidays. Express associates are screened and evaluated before being placed in short- and long-term assignments in a variety of administrative, professional and commercial positions.

Companies and individuals interested in participating in the Pay it Forward Holiday Hiring Drive can contact a local Express office.

Express Employment Professionals is on a mission to put a million people to work annually and helped more than 367,000 people find jobs in 2012. With more than 650 franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa, Express provides expertise in evaluation hire, temporary staffing, professional search, and human resources, and works across a wide variety of industries. For information, visit ExpressPros.com.

SOURCE Express Employment Professionals