President Preckwinkle and Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership Join With Local Leaders in First-of-its Kind Southland Hiring Event

WHAT: Hospitality Hires Chicago (HHC) is a hiring event that promotes employment opportunities to job seekers across the Chicago region. Employers from throughout the region have participated in HHC events since their inception in 2017. The South Suburbs, for the first time, will host an HHC event, bringing together 30 employers with job openings and hundreds of pre-screened job seekers.

WHO: Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership (The Partnership), in collaboration with Southland Small Business Development Council, Illinois Small Business Development Center, Chicago Southland Convention and Visitors Bureau, Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association, Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation and Prairie State College.

Where previous HHC events have focused on the tourism and hospitality industries, this event will have a broader scope and include employers in transportation, retail, government and other economic sectors. The theme of this event is that hospitality is a customer-friendly state-of-mind that covers any job in any business or industry.

• Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Board President
• Karin M. Norington-Reaves, CEO – Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership
• Dr. Terri L. Winfree, President, Prairie State College
• Jim Garrett, President and CEO – Chicago Southland Convention and
• Visitors Bureau
• Vicki Brown, Director – Southland Illinois Small Business Development Center
• Michael Jacobson, President & CEO – Illinois Hotel and Lodging Association
• Tyrone Ward, Mayor of Robbins and President, South Suburban Mayors andManagers Association
• Southland Governmental LeadersWHEN: Tuesday July 2, 2019, from 10 am-noon. Press is invited to film B-roll and interview officials, employers and participants during this time period.WHERE: Prairie State College, 202 South Halsted Street, Chicago Heights IL, 60411, in the conference center. Free on-site parking is available.WHY: Cook County and The Partnership have identified the Southland — an area rich in assets such as available land in proximity to major highways and rail lines, a trained workforce and outstanding educational institutions — as an area of opportunity for a hiring event that brings together employers and job-seekers.