A5

By SHAWN BERRY
berry.shawn@dailygleaner.com

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The head of New Brunswick's contact industry association says he expects many of the workers who are losing their jobs at the Avis Budget Group customer contact centre later this year will find jobs at a job fair this month.

Avis Budget Group recently announced that 130 employees in its truck rental call centre will be laid off Dec. 18. The remaining 90 jobs will be transferred to Tulsa, Okla., by July.

ContactNB and Enterprise Fredericton are holding a job fair for the affected employees Nov. 12.

"I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see more than half (of the employees) have offers from other centres," said Mike Bacon, executive director of the industry association, ContactNB, Monday.

"Before the media even called me when the closure was announced (Oct. 20), other centres were calling to tell me they have jobs to fill," he said.

He said one Fredericton operation alone may have as many as 40 positions to fill. He said other local contact centre companies will participate, as will contact centres from other New Brunswick cities, some of which offer work-from-home opportunities.

Bacon said the industry is unique because its members are serving different industries.

While Avis Budget Group may be contracting its business, others are expanding, he said.

Bacon said he has been in contact with officials at Avis Budget Group at the company's head office in New Jersey.

"They seem really concerned about their employees," he said.

While some companies hosting a job fair will ask participating companies not to offer jobs until after a closure, Bacon said Avis Budget Group isn't looking for that restriction.

Officials with the Department of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour met with managers from Avis Budget Group twice last week, said department spokeswoman Lori-Jean Johnson.

The department has scheduled four employment-search workshops to be held at the Avis Budget Group office over the next week. The sessions are meant to prepare employees for the job fair.

Department employees will return to the centre the next week to provide information sessions about career decision-making and training.