[photo credit: Altadena AJCC]
The weekly recruitment sessions, called Fire Recovery Thursdays, take place from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Altadena Job Center, 464 W. Woodbury Rd., Suite 210, where staff from the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity screen applicants on the spot for paid positions lasting three to five months in departments such as Public Works, Parks and Recreation, and Beaches and Harbors. More than 14 months after the January 2025 fire destroyed over 9,000 structures across Altadena and surrounding communities, the program has placed more than 200 survivors in county roles, according to the department.
The need is acute. Employment in the Eaton fire area fell approximately 19% between mid-2024 and mid-2025, with losses concentrated in food service, retail and administrative support, according to a joint study by the Department of Economic Opportunity and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation released in January 2026.
Two of the program’s early hires illustrate how the Thursday pop-ups work. Adriene McIver, whose family’s house was damaged in the fire, left her home care job to help her parents recover. Juan Bachelier, a video editor who lost most of his Palisades-based clients overnight, spent six months doing construction work in Arizona before returning to Los Angeles. Both found the program through a fire recovery job fair and were hired by the county to work inside the One-Stop Permit Center in Altadena, helping other survivors navigate the rebuilding process, CBS Los Angeles reported in February 2026.
“We’re basically starting over,” McIver told CBS Los Angeles.
The Fire Recovery and Resilience Workforce Program is funded by $14.2 million in grants from the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency and the Employment Development Department, according to the Department of Economic Opportunity. It was designed to support 1,000 workers in total. Participants receive benefits and access to supportive services valued at up to $34,000, according to the county.
“We aren’t talking about bricks and mortar, we’re talking about really reconnecting people’s lives, because that’s what life is about,” Maritza Dubie-Uribe, a senior project manager with the program, told CBS Los Angeles.
The Altadena Job Center, which opened in September 2025, is co-located at the county’s One-Stop Permit Center. Beyond the Thursday pop-ups, the center offers career counseling, resume preparation, job training for industry-recognized credentials and job placement services on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. All services are free. Youth ages 14 to 24 can enroll in Youth@Work for 160 hours of paid work experience.
“This resource is especially meaningful for Eaton Fire survivors who are still working to rebuild their lives and livelihoods,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement when the center opened.
Attendees at the Thursday pop-ups should bring a valid photo ID — such as a driver’s license, government-issued ID or passport — and work authorization documents. A resume is helpful but not required. Fire Recovery Thursdays are held at all 18 America’s Job Center of California locations countywide; the Altadena center is the closest to the burn zone. For more information, call (888) 226-6300, email NDWG@opportunity.lacounty.gov, or visit opportunity.lacounty.gov.
The county had placed more than 200 fire survivors through the program as of late February, according to CBS Los Angeles. Whether the remaining capacity — designed for 1,000 workers — will be reached depends on continued enrollment, a question the program’s weekly presence in Altadena is meant to answer.
WEEKLY RECRUITMENT POP-UPS — EATON FIRE RECOVERY FOR WORKERS & JOB SEEKERS Date & Time: Thursday, April 2, 2026, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. (recurring weekly). Venue: Altadena Job Center (America’s Job Center of California), 464 W. Woodbury Rd., Suite 210, Altadena, CA (one of 18 AJCC locations countywide). Phone Number: (888) 226-6300. Website: https://www.ajcc.lacounty.gov/find-your-ajcc/altadena-ajcc
