The Job of Finding a Job : Training: The lackluster economy has led to record-high enrollment at Coastline Regional Occupational Program, where hundreds waited hours on Tuesday to sign up for classes.

Abraham Ortega has a well-paid job as an administrator with the Department of Defense. But, he’s definitely not sanguine about his present employment status.

So Tuesday, Ortega and his wife, Emily, joined hundreds of others in a seemingly endless line, waiting for hours to sign up for vocational training classes on the first day of adult registration at Coastline Regional Occupational Program in Costa Mesa. Coastline, which held registration for its fall term Tuesday, is one of the four state-funded job training programs in Orange County.

“With the economy the way it is, how can anyone be sure they’ll have a job tomorrow,” the 55-year-old Costa Mesa man stated matter-of-factly as he waited in line.

Registration started at 9 a.m., but a few camped out the night before and many more came before dawn to make sure they would get the classes they wanted. By the time the doors closed at 6 p.m., about 1,000 people had enrolled for the fall session. Registration for those classes that are not filled continues today.

Officials said record-high enrollment this year at all four programs is directly related to the lackluster economy and the high unemployment rates.

“In all my years being involved in work programs, the statistics never failed; when enrollment is high, the economy is at its low point,” said Paul E. Snyder, Coastline superintendent. “And, in terms of the economy, this is the worst I’ve seen in 20 years.”

What’s more, unlike years past when people signed up for jobs they want to do, most now are looking for more practical training.

“Before, we’d have people registering for class like flower arrangement, now the popular classes are in the health field or business field where the job market has more openings,” said Nancy Vopat, manager of recruitment and marketing. “It’s not unusual for people to come here without knowing what kind of training they want. They just come up to us and ask, ‘Where are my best chance of getting a job?”’

For Jan Belfield of Irvine, Lotus advance computer training is “the field to be in.”

Belfield, an executive secretary with 14 years’ experience, has been unemployed since December. She has sent out countless resumes and registered with five temporary employment agencies only to be told repeatedly by prospective employers that “there’s just too many of you looking for work and the competition is tough.”

“So, what do you do? You come here at 7:50 a.m. to make sure you get the session you want,” said Belfield, who at 11:30 a.m. was still in the middle of a queue that snaked around the corner of the building.

Several spaces behind her, Gunnery Sgt. Robert Dewald, 34, of Irvine, was worried about getting a job when he leaves the Marine Corps in 2 1/2 years.

“It’s never too late to start speculating about a job, not with how things are now,” said Dewald, who wants to take a small business and management class so that he can start his own business. “I’m employed by the government and am on the inside looking out and, let me tell you, I don’t like what I’m seeing.

“I’m just seeing a lot of people who don’t find jobs or have lost jobs, and it’s scary.”

By noon, many of the classes at Coastline were filled and about 100 people were turned away. Still, at least 400 others who didn’t get the class they want signed on a waiting list--just in case some spots are vacated.

The Ortegas were two of the lucky ones; they got the computer classes they wanted.

Despite his job supervising contracts for the Department of Defense, Abraham Ortega explained his fear stems from upcoming layoffs by the government agency.