Everett center helps people find jobs

EVERETT -- Charlotte Nichols says she has her dream job.

She earns $8.55 per hour, the state's minimum wage.

She can work up to 20 hours a week. That's not enough to support herself. She collects unemployment benefits to make ends meet.

Money doesn't define her job, Nichols said. She works as a computer lab aide at WorkSource at Everett Station. She helps job seekers learn computer skills so they can find work.

She helps people. That's what defines her job, Nichols said.

"I love it, love it, love it!" she said.

Nichols of Marysville teaches people how to look for job openings online, create resumes and get free e-mail accounts. Her job also involves counseling people, she said. Some people come to WorkSource, a jobs center with state resources, after getting laid off. They feel lost and down, Nichols said.

She can relate to that, she said. She used to feel the same.

Nichols was laid off from her last job as a financial specialist at Evergreen Manor in Everett in May. The bad economy forced the company to downsize its staff, she said.

"I got very depressed," she said. "I was very down because I knew my age would be against me. Who wants to hire a 63-year-old lady?"

Nichols is a mother of four children, a grandmother of 10 and a great-grandmother of five. Two of her children live nearby and help her with groceries and gas, she said.

Last year, she started visiting WorkSource as a job seeker. She sent out numerous resumes for openings. But her job search didn't go anywhere.

She's healthy, experienced and active, but employers might have crossed her off because of her age, Nichols said.

"It is harder for mature workers to find a job," she said. "They think older workers will get sick more often. I don't think they look at a big picture of mature people."

Older workers bring experience and life skills, she added.

As her frustration grew, Nichols met with a counselor at WorkSource who asked if she would mind working part-time for minimum wage. No, Nichols said.

In January, she got her job through a federal program that helps workers 55 or older find work. She doesn't get health insurance or other benefits. But she's grateful that she has a job.

Once her unemployment benefits expire this year, she plans to start receiving Social Security, Nichols said. She wants to keep her part-time job and continue to help job seekers.

"It's going to help them find a job, probably better than mine, but that's OK," she said. "I'm doing what I love."

Keep going; stay positive, Nichols tells job seekers.

"You can't change yesterday, but maybe you can change tomorrow," she said.

Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.