This morning Temple University and the offices of Philadelphia City Council President Darrell L. Clarke and State Sen. Shirley M. Kitchen will host a community job fair to provide employment opportunities for members of the Philadelphia community-at-large.

Held this year from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Pearson-McGonigle Hall’s gymnasium, the event will include 70 employers, including Allied Barton Security Services, Sunoco, Comcast, Home Depot, PNC Bank, New York Life, SEPTA, US Airways, Embassy Suites, Jidan Cleaning, American Puerto Ricans on the March (APM), and The Consortium.

Last year, candidates hopeful to find a job with one of the participating employers began to line Liacouras Walk hours before the event was scheduled to start. Throughout the afternoon the line to enter Mitten Hall spanned several blocks at Temple’s Main Campus.

In response to community need, the annual job fair has increased the number of employers and moved the location to the much larger Pearson-McGonigle Hall.

“Our Annual Neighborhood Job Fair has grown to become one of Philadelphia’s largest premier job fair events,” said Michael Robinson, director of community outreach in Temple’s Division of Human Resources. “Last year, we had over 3,200 job seekers attend our event; this year we’re hoping to exceed that benchmark.”

Job seekers are urged to come dressed in business attire, with resumes.

“There will be an opportunity for job seekers to interact directly with company representatives from around the city and apply for open positions on the spot,” said Robinson.

The event is one component of a full program of workforce activities offered by the university.

Temple University’s Office of Community Outreach and Hiring serves surrounding North Philadelphia residents by providing monthly job readiness workshops, an eight week professional development seminar and career coaching.