University of Pennsylvania alum creates job site for those unemployed due to COVID-19

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Aaron Fishkind recently graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a job lined up, but his verbal offer fell through.

"Once the coronavirus hit and I followed up with them they were like, 'We don't have anything open at the time. We are firing not hiring,'" Fishkind said.

Fishkind became active on a new site created by fellow Penn Students which links job seekers with recruiters.

"Being a smaller and newer site, you probably have more of a chance to be spotted given the fact there were millions of people on Indeed," Fishkind said.

Fishkind was able to score a job in financial service thanks to a connection from the site.

Fellow Penn alum Sigal Spitzer is the founder.

"Personally, I was affected. My start date for a job that I had lined up was postponed about two to three months," Spitzer said.

Spitzer was driven to help.

The site is free and people can chat with others in their industries and see who is hiring.

"Government officials, rightfully so, on the health and safety of the future of the American people, I thought that the unemployment crisis was being somewhat neglected," Spitzer said.

"Like a lot of people, I kind of felt a little bit helpless where you want to make a difference but it's just hard to know how," Wharton student Rachel Brenner said.

By next month the ambitious Penn alum plans to expand the site to include offering mentoring for those job hunting and resume critiques.