Originally Posted by
Itsajob
How do these job fair deals work? There are general job fairs as well as ones supporting gay people, women, minorities, etc. Are extra points given to people who attend these events, or are they just a seminar where people can attend and possibly gain information on how to improve your chances of getting hired?
It has nothing to do with the demographic. These job fairs are run by nonprofits geared towards aviation and use the money jobseekers pay to fund aviation scholarships, versus previous generations who had to pay for profit companies who may or may not have been run by less than reputable folks.
Now, airlines may not be inclined to hire people who WON'T go to a minority themed event because they may have a hard time fitting in with their colleagues when hired. IE: I don't feel comfortable at a female-centric conference... Well guess what, the UAL chief pilot is a woman.
Many airlines attend events like 'Sun and Fun' or the Reno Air Races etc, as well. Alaska has an airshow they sponsor. However, WAI, NGPA and OBAP have the largest and best run aviation networking events in the country and it makes sense to have a presence. It is also a benefit to job seekers to have pretty much every airline in the country in one place versus attending a bespoke event for every airline one at a time, if you don't want to spend 10 weekends a year pounding the pavement.