Photo By Staff Sgt. April Campbell | Citizens in Old Adhamiyah follow the instructors example on the projected computer...... read more read more
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By PFC April Campbell
3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division
BAGHDAD – Individuals filled the chairs of the dimly lit classroom Feb. 24. All sat quietly studying their material, intent on the day's lesson.
These were not children, but adults, and they were not studying books and handwritten notes, but computers with Windows and Microsoft Office software. These were citizens of Adhamiyah searching for better job opportunities.
The Al Najah Employment Center is one way the benefits of a more secure environment here are carrying over into the economic development of this Baghdad neighborhood.
"Job creation and professional development are ... necessary for a stable local economy," said Maj. Darryl Perry, a Baltimore native.
Perry is a team leader with Civil Affairs Team 5025, Company B, 450th Airborne Civil Affairs Battalion, 360th Airborne Civil Affairs Brigade. He is currently serving as a civil affairs officer with the 3rd Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, which is currently attached to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad.
Khailed Hassien is a trainer at the center, located in the Noor building on Raash Alhooash Street in Old Adhamiyah.
"We opened our office here in November of 2007, and, since then, we have found jobs for between 600 and 700 people," said Hassien through an interpreter.
Many of the jobs found are with the Adhamiyah Public Service Corps and focus largely on increasing the essential services in and repairing the area. This includes such jobs as picking up trash and painting.
The Al Najah Employment Center also ensures the people they help find jobs are paid fairly.
"Before, when the people were given jobs, sometimes the contractor did not pay them the full amount. They took some (of the money) for themselves," Ahmed Yeyha, manager of the Al Najah Employment Center, said through an interpreter.
"Now, because this agency follows the payment," added Ahmed, "we can make sure (the employees) get all the money (owed to them)."
Raad Janjon and his friend used the agency to find temporary jobs as painters. After their jobs were finished, they returned to the employment center to find new jobs.
"The agency gave us a general idea of how to paint and how to deal with the contractor and the contract," Janjon said through an interpreter.
They were able to address any problems they had with their jobs or contracts at the employment agency, added Janjon.
While most of the jobs coordinated through the center are temporary jobs connected to the APSC, roughly 100 are long-term jobs on the open market, said Capt. Thomas Connor, an Arlington, Va., native.
Connor is the team leader for Civil Affairs Team 5024, Co. B, 450th Abn. Civil Affairs Bn., and also serves as a civil affairs officer with the 3rd Sqdn., 7th CAV.
As more people begin to bring home paychecks, the quality of life in Adhamiyah continues to improve.
The employment agency is making a big difference because many of these people did not have money before, said Hassein.
Janjon and his friend had struggled to find a job for nearly two years. They have better lives now that they found work, said Janjon.
"We did not have money before; we were struggling to live," he said. "Now we don't want."
| Date Taken: | 02.25.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 02.25.2008 10:10 |
| Story ID: | 16667 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 544 |
| Downloads: | 494 |
This work, Employment agency helps Adhamiyans find jobs, by SSG April Campbell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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