“I applaud President Bush and Secretary Chao for recognizing the devastating impact a storm like this can have on Florida's job market,” said Lt. Governor Jennings.  “Florida's friendly business climate and our strong work ethic have made us a national leader in job creation.  With this support from our federal partners we will be able to ensure that trend continues.”

The NEG will, among other uses, create temporary jobs to provide clean-up, restoration, and humanitarian assistance to designated communities. The recovery work performed by the temporary jobs is limited to rebuilding public and private not-for-profit entities. Participants will be paid the prevailing wage for the type of work in their respective labor market.

Workforce Florida, Inc. and the Agency for Workforce Innovation submitted a National Emergency Grant application on August 16th to provide employment and training assistance to help mitigate the impacts to Florida's workforce resulting from the devastating effects of Hurricane Charley and Tropical Storm Bonnie. 

“I have seen first-hand the physical destruction that this storm has brought, and I am especially concerned for our agricultural workers whose livelihoods have been threatened by crop losses,” said Susan Pareigis, Director of the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation, who joined Secretary Chao and Lt. Governor Jennings at the grant announcement today.  “We will coordinate our efforts as we are doing today to ensure that every worker affected by the storm has the opportunity to get back into productive employment and support their families.”

However, hard work awaits Charley's jobless.  People who lost their jobs because of the hurricane find most of the work on offer is construction or cleanup.

More than 350 people packed the job fair at the Career and Service Center of Charlotte County, only to find that most of the 1,000 job openings available involved debris cleanup or construction.

It was yet another blow to the more than 1,900 Charlotte County residents who lost their jobs because of the hurricane. Their homes destroyed and belongings ruined, they now may have to settle for low-paying jobs or work they never imagined doing.

Normally, about 10 people a day file for unemployment at the Port Charlotte office. Now, as many as to 80 people are coming in every day. A hotel resort in Captiva asked for 250 unemployment applications.

"We're looking for unemployment to peak in six months," said Tracy Lansberry, director of programs at the Southwest Florida Workforce Development Board. Charlotte County's preliminary July jobless rate was 3.9 percent.

Area restaurants and hotels are bustling because of the relief workers and cleanup crews in town. When they leave, even more people will be out of work.  Construction companies, however, expect to be busy for at least a year.

Counties affected by Hurricane Charley will receive federal funds to create temporary jobs for displaced workers. Those workers can receive up to $12,000 in six months. But many of those jobs at public and nonprofit agencies will be clerical or physical labor.

DONORS STEP FORWARD

Donations for Hurricane Charley victims continue to pour in from several sources:

The Lilly Endowment has given $10-million for Hurricane Charley victims, the largest relief amount it has distributed for a single cause since the Sept. 11 attacks. The endowment, based in Indianapolis, gave $5-million each to the Salvation Army and Red Cross.

Three organizations - Carnival Corp., the Miami-based cruise company; Publix Super Markets Charities; and the Starr Foundation - each is donating $1-million to various relief efforts.

On Monday, Lt. Gov. Toni Jennings said the state's Hurricane Charley Relief Fund had grown to about $2.8-million in pledges. That total included $500,000 from Carnival and $1-million from the Starr Foundation, which is associated with AIG Insurance Co.