SANFORD, Fla. — Chances are you know someone who is without a job. 


What You Need To Know

  • Central Florida's unemployment rate was 15.1 percent for July

  • That number is 4 percent higher than the state average

  • Some are seeing life coming back to the job market

“They sent us a letter saying they were going to permanently lay me off,” said Larry Tillman, who has been out of work for weeks.

Tillman use to work for SeaWorld doing security. Now the husband and father of three described what his last few months have looked like.

“The last five months for have been tough," he said. "For me it has been school work, applying for jobs, making sure the bills are paid.”

For Tillman, the bill paying can soon be a problem. He said he applies for 8-10 jobs a week and has done so every week since March, even applying for jobs he may not have the most experience in.

“I’ve applied for Target, I've applied to Publix Security, Target security, Walmart stocker,” Tillman said.

According to CareerSource, Central Florida’s Unemployment rate was at 15.1% for July. That was nearly four percentage points higher than the rest of the state.

Officials with Orlando's Crawford Thomas Recruiting said jobs are starting to come back. 

“There’s a lot of candidates out there in the marketplace right now," said Crawford Thomas Recruiting recruiting director Steven Bransetter. "That means people are having to go through job transitions where they were doing hospitality in the past or at Disney, and they are not back there.”

As the state continues to reopen, Bransetter said more and more jobs are coming back. On Thursday, 84 Lumber is hosting a job fair and will be looking to hire 15-20 people.

“These are long-term, full positions that will be here for the next years to come," said 84 Lumber Divisional VP Rob Woodrow. "It may be a chance for people to look at a different industry that they may not have known was out there, or even hiring.”

Tillman said he’ll be there Thursday.

The Job Fair for 84 Lumber will be from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday at their Sanford location. According to Crawford Thomas, it is taking job seekers 30-45 days, on average, to find work.