Saturday, December 06, 2008

HP Career Fair Extended 2 Hours

By Rosalie Rayburn
Journal Staff Writer
          Computer giant Hewlett-Packard has extended the hours for a career fair aimed at recruiting employees for its planned Rio Rancho customer support center.
        The fair will be held from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Dec. 12 at HP's temporary office at 4411 The 25 Way NE, in Albuquerque.
        HP had originally planned to close the job fair at 4 p.m. The company decided to keep it open for an extra two hours to provide more flexibility to job seekers, said Randall Davis, HP's Rio Rancho site manager.
        The center the California-based corporation plans to open a year from now in downtown Rio Rancho will provide sales and technical support for HP products ranging from notebook computers to desktops, from servers to hand-held devices.
        HP has said the center will have 1,350 employees by 2013, with an average annual starting salary of $40,000. Davis has said the majority of those employees will be hired locally.
        New Mexico Workforce Connection, a division of the Mid-Region Council of Governments that helps match qualified candidates with companies seeking employees, is helping HP with its recruiting campaign.
        Ramona Chavez, the organization's workforce investment act manager, is recommending that job seekers contact a New Mexico Workforce Connection office for information about the HP career fair in advance of the event.
        New Mexico Workforce Connection has offices at the following locations:
        • 501 Mountain Road NE, Albuquerque 87102, phone 843-1900.
        • 661 Quantum Road NW, Rio Rancho, 87124, phone 896-1765.
        • 222 South Main, Suite 5, Belen, 87002, phone 861-2144.
        • 777 Old Route 66, Moriarty, 87035, phone 832-6774.
        The offices are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. It is not necessary to make an appointment, Chavez said.