T-L Photo/GAGE VOTA Over 100 employers attend OhioMeansJobs annual job fair at the Ohio Valley Mall.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — OhioMeansJobs hosted its annual job fair at the Ohio Valley Mall on Thursday.

Workforce Supervisor Mike Schlantz said 115 employers were in attendance.

“This is our annual job fair. It’s probably been going on for 18 to 20 years, and now we’ve had it at the mall for several years,” Schlantz said. “It’s a great opportunity to bring employers and job seekers together in one location.”

He added that the fair helps both parties.

“This is probably our best turnout. We have everything from mining, oil and gas, food service, retail, social services, hospitality and banking,” Schlantz said. “We have every industry that you can imagine here.”

He added that this year appears to have drawn the largest number of job seekers.

“I’m pleased with the turnout this year,” Schlantz said.

The event took place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and saw several local schools bus students to the mall for the job fair.

Marketing Director Candi Noble-Greathouse said the fair is always a success and the mall is pleased to continue hosting it.

“Obviously, we had a lot of employers and job seekers. But it’s just great to work with the entire crew from job and family services and OhioMeansJobs,” Noble-Greathouse said. “And of course, our stores participate in the job fair themselves, and we always benefit from the employers and job seekers coming in and making a day of shopping as well.”

Schlantz added that the fair originally was hosted at the St. Clairsville J.B. Martin Recreation Center but outgrew that space and moved to the mall about eight years ago.

“We could only hold about maybe 50 employers there but this is a great place to grow. It’s a win-win for the mall, it’s bringing a lot of traffic in during the week, which helps out the stores,” Schlantz said.

He added that the fair is a free service OhioMeansJobs provides to local employers.

Schlantz said job seekers who missed the event can still get information by contacting OhioMeansJobs Belmont County in Martins Ferry or visiting www.ohiomeansjobs.com/belmont

.

OhioMeansJobs is located at 302 Walnut St. in Martins Ferry.