GREEN JOBS PROMISED, but will they be delivered?

About the only positive employment news this past week were the announcements that ...

1. The labor department has $500,000 available for training blue collar workers for green jobs and

2. The climate bill IF passed will provide significant new employment opportunities.

Unfortunately, both the green industry and the climate change legislation remain highly controversial as to their true impact on employment.

NEW Internet Portal to the Job Market

Available starting today ... all your Internet employment resources in one portal to the job market. www.findemploymentnetwork.com

Daily employment news.

Recent employment publications from a number of authors

Prominent sites with large job search capabilities

Sites for sharing resources

Social networking sites

Employment networking

Employment tips

FREE GUIDE for UNEMPLOYED PARENTS

EMPLOYMENT RESOURCES FOR SENIORS

One of our readers has recommended the following sites as having resources for seniors seeking employment. I checked them out and they seem worthwhile indeed.

(No, I don't get paid for this plug)

http://www.Retirementjobs.com

http://www.Workforce50.com

Please share your experiences with these or other age friendly employment sites by commenting on this post.

Career Trend Analysis 1Q 2009

I ran across a most interesting report published by Beyond.com http://www.beyond.com/Media/Beyond.comCareerTrendAnalysisReport-1QTR2009.pdf

Although it is a quarter behind, it is still an excellent presentation in text and graphic form of the changes that are taking place in the job market from their unique perspective. Here is an example:

"We assessed overall industry growth in online job postings over the past 12 months and the industries with the largest percentage increase included: Healthcare & Medical (10.55%), Merchandising, Purchasing & Retail (7.19%), and Engineering & Architecture (2.29%). The industries with the largest percentage decrease included: Sales & Sales Management (-4.22%), Clerical & Administrative (-3.85%), and Travel, Hospitality & Restaurant (-3.41%)."

GROWTH IN GREEN JOBS

The positive news this past week was focused on a new research study concluding that jobs in the green sector of the American economy grew at an annual rate of 9% over the last decade. This was twice the rate for the rest of the economy.

California is leading in jobs growth in the green sector which is expected to give the state a competitive advantage in the next ten years.

See articles referenced in www.wherethejobsare.info

Workforce Trends 2010 Ira Wolfe 5/3/09

OLD PARADIGMS                                NEW PARADIGMS    

Job/Person Fit......................................Person/Organization Fit                            

Longitudinal Career Paths.......................Alternate Career Paths

Organizational Loyalty...........................Job/Task Loyalty

Career Success....................................Work/Family Balance

Academic Degree..................................Continuous Relearning

Position/Title........................................Competencies/Development

Full-Time Employment............................Contract Employment

Retirement..........................................Career Sabbaticals

Single Jobs/Careers...............................Multiple Jobs/Careers

Change in jobs based on fear..................Change in jobs based on growth

Promotion tenure based.........................Promotion performance based

Talent Shortage - Manpower Inc. Survey 5/09

19% of the firms surveyed in the USA reported difficulty in filling positions due to lack of suitable talent in their markets. 

The ten jobs most difficult to fill in the Americas (especially S. America) are:

1. Technicians (primarily production/operations, engineering or maintenance)

2. Production Operators

3. Accounting & Finance Staff

4. Laborers

5. Engineers

6. Sales Representatives

7. Management/Executives

8. Sales Managers

9. Skilled Trades

10. Secretaries, PAs, Administration Assistants & Office Support

Go where the jobs are

The way to catch your limit in fish is to go where the fish are. That seems pretty obvious doesn't it?

An unemployed fellow recently explained to me why he can't leave the depressed area where he is currently located. Make no mistake, he had plenty of good reasons.

The odds are, though, that this man will continue to butt his head against the wall looking for work until he is flat broke and his unemployment runs out. Then he will be out of options.

He will be stuck fishing in a pond where there are no fish.

Keep abrest of the job market at www.wherethejobsare.info

May Employment News - Good or Bad?

The May figures have just come out - (See www.wherethejobsare.info)

Fewer jobs were cut in May than at any time since last September.  Yeaaaaa!

The unemployment level rose to 9.4% which is the highest in 25 years.  Boo

I guess this means that things are getting worse, but not as fast as they were.

Spinning the Employment News

It is interesting how the same news can be presented to create different impacts. For example ...

The unemployment rate is 9%   Boo! 

The employment rate is 91%   yea!

Unemployment increased by 500,000 during the month of May.   Boo!

The number of jobs lost in May was much less than in preceeding months.   Yea!

Feel the power.