Thousands of job-seekers lined up in the partylike atmosphere inside the convention center at National Harbor’s Gaylord National Resort, and while elected officials will be happy to hear many of those hired are likely to be local,many will also go home empty-handed.
About 17,000 people are preregistered to take a shot at one of 1,400 jobs the resort is trying to fill during its four-day hiring spree, which means an acceptance rate of about 8 percent, lower than acceptance rates at any Ivy League colleges. More than 10 percent of Harvard applicants get in.
But there will be other chances — another 600 jobs will become available this summer, and hotel and elected officials said to expect turnover in the service jobs.
Since the outset, Prince George’s County elected officials have been keeping a close eye on hiring at National Harbor businesses. According to an agreement between Gaylord Resort and the county, at least 30 percent of its employees must be county residents, said David Byrd, deputy chief administrative officer for government operations.
The hotel has already hired 250 employees and 34 percent of those are from the county, Byrd said.
And many of the most recently hired who filtered into a party room Wednesday afternoon were area residents.
That makes sense, Jesse Stewart, a Gaylord human resources vice president said. The company, with help from county officials, ran seminars in Prince George’s for potential applicants. The company can’t ask where an applicant comes from, but there’s plenty of Prince George’s county residents in the pipeline, he said.
For Anthony Jordan, 19, of Prince George’s County, landing a job as a beverage attendant Wednesday is just the launching pad for a career in the restaurant business.
But for John Milton, 53, of Prince George’s County it’s the final landing spot of a career as a custom painter.
“I worked hard at my trade all my life, knowing one day it would pay off and this is that day.”
