TOWN OF TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WKBW) — It's been nearly a month since Sumitomo Rubber abruptly shut down its plant in the Town of Tonawanda, leaving more than 1,500 workers without a job.
To try to help the laid-off workers find new employment, the New York State Department of Labor hosted a massive job fair Tuesday.
Hundreds of former workers and dozens of potential employers filled the Lincoln Park Athletic Complex in the town for the fair.
John Preston, who was a machine cleaner who worked at Sumitomo for 13 years, said it's been difficult.
"Just pushing, keeping the faith," Preston said.
“It's still like kind of a shock, you know, it came out of nowhere," Darren Peetes told me.
"Since the floor came out from underneath me, it's been...a little shaky," said Jack Kinsella.
Workers said the timing of the layoffs — just before the holidays — has been tough to handle.
“I'm lucky my neighbors taking care of me, my family, you know, they're giving me extra money," said Don Kisloski.
Recruiters were eager to hire the workers, including Angela Falletta, who is the recruitment development manager for Brawdy Construction in Clarence. They're offering on-the-job training.
“It's just honest, hard-working people looking to find that next step," she said of the workers she was hoping to hire.
The job fair drew the Veterans Administration and other resources to assist the workers.
“There are estimated between 1,500 and 2,000 veterans that worked at Sumitomo. So we really wanted to make sure that they knew that we were available for them," said Melissa Schwab, program manager for outpatient behavioral health at the VA in Buffalo.
While many folks were there with their resumes in hand, the fair was also a reunion of sorts. Many hadn't seen each other in person since the layoffs last month.
"We didn't really get to have a proper farewell with one another. So seeing each other here is kind of, feels good," said Cameron Cahill.
Dave Diliberto said he's one of the lucky ones. He was a couple of months shy of retiring anyway. He showed up just to show support.
“Our guys are a tough group," he said. "You know, they're gonna keep their chin up...I'm confident that most of them are going to land in a good spot. We're going to carry on, you know? We're Buffalo strong. It's what we do.”
