The Seniors Job Bank, based in West Hartford, depends on the support of the community to support its operations.

Submitted by Bernie Weiss

The Seniors Job Bank has received a $1,500 grant from the Rotary Club of West Hartford. According to Sheila Diamond, Seniors Job Bank executive director, “This very welcome donation has been earmarked to support enhancements to our website.”

The Seniors Job Bank, now in its 40th year, is a volunteer-driven community service organization that connects men and women over age 50, seeking work, with businesses, government agencies, nonprofits, and households that have work to be done. From its West Hartford headquarters, SJB serves the entire Greater Hartford region.

Eileen Rau, West Hartford Rotary Foundation chair, noted that the award “signals a longstanding shared commitment of our local Rotary club and the Seniors Job Bank for us both to deliver value to our community.”

Dennis Carrithers, president of the Seniors Job Bank pointed out that, “Linking our job seeking service providers with the clients that hire them is free; we charge no referral fee to either party. So we depend on contributions from individuals, philanthropies and hometown supporters like Rotary to maintain our no-cost policy.”

Describing how the Seniors Job Bank operates, Diamond said that when a client with a job to fill calls SJB, its request is matched against a database of approximately 700 service providers, representing about 150 distinct skills and talents, blue- and white collar.

The potential employer, a company, other entity or household, receives contact information for several service providers qualified to handle the task at hand. The client then decides which service providers to interview and hire. Negotiating the specifics of the assignment: exactly what’s to be done, hours, compensation, etc., is between client and service provider. The Seniors Job Bank merely facilitates the introduction.

“While our service providers are over 50, the clients for which they work may be of any age,” Diamond added.

Some of the Seniors Job Bank’s domestic clients need help with one-time repairs and chores. Others engage an SJB service provider for ongoing home and yard maintenance programs or personal assistance such as with grocery shopping. Similarly, commercial clients look for aid on a regular, part-time schedule as well as for one-off assignments. These jobs may involve office, transportation, retail, industrial and many other types of work.

To discuss becoming a Seniors Job Bank service provider, or to inquire about hiring one, visit www.sjbct.org, call 860-521-3210, or email [email protected].

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