By Violet Ferguson, Commerce Lexington Inc. Public Policy Intern
I’m a member of Gen Z, and one of my top concerns for the future is securing housing that will meet my needs and budget for a young professional. I am a born and raised Lexingtonian. Like many of my generation, I dream of raising a family and owning my own home. However, this vision is dimmed by the harsh realities of the housing market across the U.S., and specifically in Lexington. 

I am going into my second year at American University in Washington, D.C. I am currently back in Lexington for the summer interning with Commerce Lexington. While living in D.C., the issue of housing has become a topic discussed by my peers and me as we are forced to think about our living arrangements for college.

While back in Lexington, I’ve learned many of my local friends feel the same stress of rapidly rising housing rates. Students and young professionals are having to live with parents or friends or live outside of Fayette County and commute to school or work opportunities because of the high costs or lack of inventory.

Commerce Lexington is pleased to announce that it has launched a new and improved on-line Job Board platform that will be beneficial to both employers and job seekers across the region.  While Commerce Lexington member businesses can post job opportunities at no charge as a member benefit for up to 60 days, the job posting option is now available to all businesses across the region for a nominal cost, providing a more local and targeted approach to hiring.
 
This new Job Board is more user-friendly with jobs searchable by keyword, location, industry, and employment type.  Employers can also take advantage of added upgrades when posting jobs, such as featured listings that include listings pushed to the top of the board, highlighted posts, and jobs published to the Google Jobs Network. There is also a Résumé Bank that enables people to upload their résumés for added visibility and employers to source qualified candidates.  Résumés connect directly to member profiles to make follow-up easy.
 
Commerce Lexington President and CEO, Bob Quick, said, “Employers have been facing huge challenges of maintaining and growing their workforce, and this new on-line platform will help them better promote job openings and connect with job seekers. There is an ongoing regional collaborative initiative that includes nine counties and aims to improve our ability to compete for jobs and talent. This new Job Board will most certainly bolster those efforts to recruit and retain talent within our region.”
 
Employers and job seekers across the region can access the new Job Board on-line here: https://commercelexington.mcjobboard.net/jobs .