LEXINGTON, Ky. — Central Kentucky job seekers can say hello to Work-Lexington, a new workforce resource center that opened Thursday for anyone looking for employment.


What You Need To Know

  • Lexington’s new workforce resource center opened its doors in the East End Neighborhood

  • Services at Work-Lexington are free

  • Goal is to offer employment to anyone looking for work

  • As program grows more centers will open

Mayor Linda Gorton, several council members and area companies unveiled the workforce training at the Charles Young Community Center.

One of the members who benefits from those resources is Bobby Sullens.

“Resumes change throughout the years. Depending on how long you've gone or haven't had a job or haven't filled out a resume, all that stuff changes,” Sullens said.

Sullens said it was until he got a job at a lumber company called Old World Timber that he'd noticed so many things had changed.

“Life out here doesn't stop everything changes, technology, everything, you gotta learn everything new,” Sullens said.

Sullens said he made a mistake several years ago, being charged with burglary and theft that landed him in jail.

“That's my first mistake and my last mistake,” Sullens said. “You gotta have that mindset, for me, and know that you don't want to travel that road again.”

When he got out, a friend told him about the Lexington Rescue Mission, one of the many organizations that will provide resources for job trainers.

“They helped me tremendously. They helped me acquire my license, resume, job training, the do's and don'ts,” Sullens said.

His employer Nathan Brown, founder of Old World Timber, couldn't help but rave about Sullens’s skillset.

“We couldn't do what we do at Old World Timber without a strong team and Bobby is a huge part of that,” Brown said. 

These are critical resources that Work-Lexington will help others look for training.

“We want to make job training accessible and available right at the neighborhood level,” said Linda Gorton, Mayor of Lexington. 

Gorton said this is just the first one of its kind in the city, with future centers on the horizon.

“The need for increased job training was identified by the Mayor's Commission on Racial Justice Inequality,” Gorton said. “This is the perfect time for workforce training as we come out of a pandemic that cost many people their jobs.”

It's a one-stop job training shop, so people like Sullens have second chances to bounce back.

“They seen something in me and asked me to be a team later. I'm honored to have that,” Sullens said.

Services at Work-Lexington are free. The center is open Monday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.