Iowa Workforce Development is sending its new mobile Iowa Works center to Perry after the announcement that Tyson plans to shut down the pork plant there.
Iowa Workforce Development director Beth Townsend recently talked about the setup of the mobile center. “We can do almost all of the services that we provide at the American Job Center in our mobile unit, and it can go anywhere, you know, river to river, border to border,” Townsend says. She says it allows them to make a quick response for an unexpected mass layoff, and they can set up in that community and be there as long as needed.
Townsend says they can respond to other events as well. “If we, God forbid, have natural disaster, we can show up and have a place to operate from, it does have a generator, so we don’t have to plug into an electrical outlet to operate,” she says. Townsend says it doesn’t have to just go to a community for emergencies. “If you’ve got a career fair or you’re an employer that needs to do a lot of hiring all at once you can sign up and we can come out and feel close to career fair right there at the mobile center,” she says.
Townsend encourages anyone who is interested to learn more about the mobile center on the Iowa Work Works website.