Lara was selected out of 500,000 associates, not only because of his eagerness and willingness to go above and beyond and be an exemplary representation of Express in and out of work; but also because of the long and hard-fought journey and resilience that it took to get him to where he is today.
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (PRWEB)
December 05, 2022
On Thursday, December 8, 2022, the Oxnard and Thousand Oaks Express Employment Professionals (Express) offices, are honored to name its associate, Julio Lara, as its 2022 West Zone Nominee for Employee of the Year at its client appreciation holiday party.
“Lara was selected out of 500,000 associates, not only because of his incredible attitude, his eagerness and willingness to go above and beyond and be an exemplary representation of Express in and out of work; but also because of the long and hard-fought journey and resilience that it took to get him to where he is today,” said Mayra Garcia, vice president at Express in Oxnard.
Last month, in November 2022, Express was able to surprise Julio at a check presentation and ceremony with his glass award and check in the amount of $1,000 to signify his amazing accomplishment. In February 2023, Julio will travel to Washington D.C. for the Express Employment Professionals International Leadership Conference with the three other zone nominees. There, he will be recognized on stage and the overall zone nominee winner will be announced.
Julio’s journey with Express began in the summer of 2016 working a seasonal position with their client JM Smucker’s in which he made a great first impression with his recruiter, Mayra Garcia. Over the next two years, Julio continued to maintain a great working relationship with Mayra in addition to a great work ethic at the assignments he worked at.
In 2018, Julio let the Express team know he took a job elsewhere. Saddened to see him go, but grateful for all the work he had done with Express, they continued to check in on him and support him when needed. About a year later, the Express team learned Julio had gotten involved with the wrong crowd, resulting with his name front and center of the local newspaper. Unfortunately, he was in arrested in connection with a stolen vehicle, possession of stolen property, possession of a methamphetamine pipe. Mayra was able to reconnect with him, and over the course of the next few months, Julio shared with Mayra and the Express team, he had sought help and entered a sober living program. From here on out, Mayra made it a personal mission to lend her support to Julio.
When Julio was transitioning from the sober living home and out on his own, Express continued to help Julio get back into the workforce. Mayra was able to secure a temporary employment opportunity for Julio at Many Mansions, non-profit organization providing affordable housing for very low-income residents who are formerly homeless, seniors, veterans, or disabled. Although, he was commuting from Oxnard, Julio worked with Many Mansions for almost 10 months, day in and day out, rain or shine, through the thick of COVID in 2021, and always early and staying late. In February 2022, Many Mansions wanted to bring him on as a full-time employee, but the requirements for this position included an extensive background check. With Julio’s history, Mayra wasn’t sure if this would pan out for Julio, but he took it upon himself to write to Many Mansions sharing about his past and how he turned his life around. Julio has now been employed with the organization for over nine months and since his conversion from Express, he has celebrated his one-year anniversary of sobriety.
With over 800 locations, the teams at Express in Oxnard and Thousand Oaks help as many people as possible to find good jobs, by helping as many clients as possible find good employees. For more information about the Oxnard and Thousand Oaks Express offices, visit https://www.expresspros.com/thousandoaksca and/or https://www.expresspros.com/OxnardCA.
About Express Employment Professionals
At Express Employment Professionals, we’re in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing 586,000 people globally in 2021 and 10 million since its inception.
Share article on social media or email: