Josh Mazon studied auto body mechanics at Mercer County Career Center and has worked for an auto-repair company, but wanted to expand his skills, mindful that it is tough to find a job.

With the Pennsylvania Conservation Corps, he's learning basic construction, plumbing, electrical wiring and other trades.

"I'm trying to get a hand in on a lot of things," said the Sandy Lake man said. "If you know a lot of things you'll have a better chance of finding a job when there isn't a lot of jobs."

The corps, a program of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, trains unemployed men and women ages 17 to 25 in carpentry, masonry, landscaping and other skills.

Some corps members have not completed high school or an equivalency program, and have few skills and little expectation to find a job, said crew leader Mike Showers, who was heading Mazon's crew in building a picnic pavilion at the Budd Street Canoe Launch Tuesday in Sharon.

Corps members work in state parks and forests, on state game lands, at historical sites, at scenes of natural disasters -- a crew helped clean up after the tornado that hit the Clark area -- and on local community projects.

Mazon, a 20-year-old Commodore Perry High School graduate who has been with the corps for six months, is on a crew based at Polk Center. His crew is building temporary housing in which Polk Center residents can live while their normal housing is being worked on.

"Everything you can work on to put a building together, we do," said Mazon, who is interested in a construction career.

Corps members sign up for a year, but can be retained for an extra six months to a year. They earn minimum wage initially, but are eligible for raises based on length of service.

The corps also has a program to help pay for additional training.

"As long as you want to learn and as long as you're willing to try and learn, it's a good program," Mazon said.

Information: at the Team Pennsylvania CareerLink center in Sharon or (888) 577-4722.