DES MOINES, Iowa — The annual Iowa State Fair is only 35 days away, meaning that the search for fair employees is in full swing.
Fair staff held open interviews Thursday to fill the 1,600 openings required to put on the fair each year.
Iowa State Fair CEO Jeremy Parsons said it takes month of preparation to put on Iowa's largest event.
"I always think about company coming over to your house and the work it takes," Parsons said. "Imagine it's 400 acres, and you need thousands of people."
From admissions to ticket sales to security staff, there are dozens of job opportunities at the fair. But like so many other businesses across the country know, filling those positions can be difficult.
“Inflation, the cost of operation a business, you know… what’s affecting the rest of the world is affecting us here at the Iowa State Fair," Parsons said.
To combat staffing issues, Parsons and other fair employees are trying to better market fair jobs to potential employees.
Jamie Ross works full-time in the Attorney General's office, but for 11 straight years, she's been working as a fair employee in a variety of roles.
She encouraged anyone and everyone, no matter your age or physical ability, to apply for a state fair job this summer.
"No matter what your limitations may be, we have something here for you that you can do,” Ross said.
Though the fair only runs for eleven days of the year, Ross also wants people to know that many seasonal roles can actually turn in more full-time positions. Many departments offer off-season work as well.
Aside from the money earned, the Iowa State Fair has long worked to build something special among their thousands of employees.
"I wouldn’t come back here year after year and take time off to do this if we didn’t have fun and if there wasn’t a fair-family mentality," Ross said.
For more information on job openings at this year's Iowa State fair, visit the fair's official website.