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At least some of them draw on a reservoir of confidence. "I'm marketable. I'm able to communicate. I've a sound mind," Bennett, who has three children in their 20s and 30s, says. As proof, he offered his past as a drug dealer . "I'm a sales rep by trade." CEO has made him hopeful, he adds. "They give you the opportunity to feel like the man you can become."

City Limits Magazine


May 2010:
The Black Depression

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Jarrett Murphy
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Others rely on insights they have obtained the hard way. Jones has lied about his criminal history on work applications, but had no luck anyway. "I always wore a suit and tie. That might not have been appropriate. People thought I was coming for their jobs," he says. "I don’t try to come across as intimidating. I can’t help it that I'm 6'3". But perception is everything."

The lack of luck has forced Jones to rethink his plans. He recently realized that being a cook might not be what he's meant to be. So he took a job with the Society. "Maybe this will be the start of my success story," Jones says. "At 47, I'm finally starting my life."

Private agencies are not alone in trying to help the jobless. New York's 10 city-run Workforce1 centers aim to connect unemployed people with training and serve as a clearing house for private sector job openings. In 2008 and 2009, more than 215,000 people sought help at the centers and some 37,000 were placed in jobs, most of them full-time positions. Nearly half the people who sought help, and half of those placed, were black.

Each borough has at least one Workforce1 center. Three centers specialize in placing workers in specific industries: healthcare in Long Island City; manufacturing in Downtown Brooklyn; and transportation in Jamaica.