ST. CLOUD - There's a growing demand for more workers in the St. Cloud metro area. Tammy Biery is the Executive Director of the Stearns-Benton Employment & Training Council. She says just one example is CentraCare where they have as many as 800 jobs they're trying to fill on any given day.

And it's not just for doctors and nurses, it's people in any position.  There's positions from all different levels from security guard, to cook, to cleaning.

CentraCare is the area's largest employer with over 10,000 employees. She says employers like CentraCare are starting to target kids even before they're old enough to enter the workforce. She says they have a youth employment camp for kids ages 14 -17 called "Career 1".

Really to give them the employability skills, but also to give them the opportunity to get on site and actually do some work.

Biery says employers are also looking to recruit recent college graduates, veterans, and immigrants to fill their job openings.

Biery says companies have had to get very creative to recruit new workers like offering sign-on bonuses, and offering more flexible hours.

The St. Cloud metro area has an unemployment rate of about four-percent. The top two industries for job openings are health care and manufacturing.

She says first and foremost they're looking for good people that they can train, that means people who will show up on time, can pass a drug test, are willing to learn, and can get along with others.

For more information on job openings in the St. Cloud area, contact the Workforce Center, which is located at the St. Cloud Technical and Community College.

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