MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — There was a big turnout for a job fair at Miami International Airport on Thursday as employers hoped to make a dent in the massive number of people now unemployed after South Florida-based Spirit Airlines went out of business.
The shutdown meant thousands of workers in South Florida were suddenly unemployed.
“In one hour, it was over,” laid-off employee Eric Tirado said.
Many at the job fair, hosted by CareerSource South Florida, said they still have unanswered questions for their former employer.
They said they they don’t believe they’ll get their last paycheck and health insurance remains a big question mark.
Some also had trouble finding the fair, held on the fourth floor of a concourse. Attendees said that flyers mentioned the third floor.
But they said they’re thankful to see the community come together to support them in their time of need.
“When you’ve been there for over two, three, four, five years ― that’s it. It becomes a lifestyle. It becomes a daily routine,“ laid-off employee Mauricio Valenci said. ”To just change from one day to the next is very difficult.”
Prospective employers included American Airlines, Miami-Dade County and private aviation companies. A number of educational institutions offering retraining opportunities were also represented, including George T. Baker Aviation Technical College and Miami Dade College.
MDC representative Marcus Ortega said the institution hopes to help “anyone that’s looking to maybe basically upscale their credentials, you know, get a little bit better at what they do, or maybe move into another career or stay within the same career but look for something to polish up their resumes and get ready for this new transition.”
For many former employees like Tirado, that transition was a sudden, unplanned and unwanted.
“Well, I’m 67 years old. I was already contemplating retiring maybe in three years,” he said. “They beat me to it.”
Tirado said he wants to stay in the aviation industry.
Organizers of the job fair said they’re hoping it’s a starting point for workers maybe transitioning to a new industry that still fuels the local economy, like tourism, logistics and customer service.
“(I’m) just thinking that it’s gonna be OK,” Tirado said. “It’s gonna be OK. But I don’t know.”
Rick Beasley, the executive director of CareerSource South Florida, said job-seekers should have an open mind.
“So you may not have that job that you were working the other day, but there are jobs that are available,” he said.
Bob Allen, with the company Nomadic Aviation, said he was able to hire some former Spirit Airlines pilots as he tries to meet a 10-day deadline to fly the airline’s fleet out of airports across the country.
“We did that on purpose,” he said.
He noted that “most of the airplanes in the world are leased so when the aircraft come off lease somebody has to be there to pick it up from the airline.”
A CareerSource spokesperson said the organization plans to hold another job fair at MIA, with a date and time yet to be announced.
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